I think chemo has trashed my thyroid

Hissy_Fitz
Hissy_Fitz Member Posts: 1,834
edited March 2014 in Ovarian Cancer #1
Pre-Cancer, I had a somewhat sluggish thyroid, for which I took 15mg per day of Armour Thyroid. Every check up I've had since then has shown my thyroid function going down, down, down. The nurse just called me, with the results of last week's labs, and they are bumping me up to 90mg of the AT.

Has this been an issue for anyone else?

Carlene

Comments

  • Barbara53
    Barbara53 Member Posts: 652
    #2
    timing meds
    Mom's thyroid was stable for years, and she had to increase the year before her OVCA diagnosis. Since then, she's run into some drug interaction issues, and she's very careful to take her thyroid rx as soon as she wakes up, then nothing to eat for 30 minutes, no other meds until after food, and no dietary supplements for 2 hours after the a.m. meds. Apparently calcium can interfere with the uptake of Lyrica and some other things, and I don't claim to know all the details. When she gets a new precription, she goes over her schedule with the pharmacist and they figure out where to best fit it into her regimen.

    Like I tell her every day, being a cancer patient is hard work!
  • msfanciful
    msfanciful Member Posts: 559
    #3
    Hi Carlene,
    Not so much the
    Hi Carlene,

    Not so much the thyroid for me , however; of late more-so my magnesium levels?

    Seems this is another side-effect of chemo long after done with it? It also seems to be what one can predisposed for anyway and just depending on that the chemo does the rest...I've had to have 2 infusions in 2 weeks. Adult levels are supposed to be at least l.5 and my first reading was .08. After the infusion, the level was up to only 1.2, so I had another. I don't know what it will be but go figure huh?

    Do you think you'll have to continue gauging your thyroid levels now?

    I hope once I get back to normal levels thats, that.

    We'll see,

    Sharon
  • Karen9182
    Karen9182 Member Posts: 60
    #4
    msfanciful said:

    Hi Carlene,
    Not so much the
    Hi Carlene,

    Not so much the thyroid for me , however; of late more-so my magnesium levels?

    Seems this is another side-effect of chemo long after done with it? It also seems to be what one can predisposed for anyway and just depending on that the chemo does the rest...I've had to have 2 infusions in 2 weeks. Adult levels are supposed to be at least l.5 and my first reading was .08. After the infusion, the level was up to only 1.2, so I had another. I don't know what it will be but go figure huh?

    Do you think you'll have to continue gauging your thyroid levels now?

    I hope once I get back to normal levels thats, that.

    We'll see,

    Sharon

    Mag? Thyroid? Hemoglobin?
    I have a growth on my neck my doc wants removed. The surgeon said it could be related to thyroid. I was dx'd with graves disease over 20 years ago but the thyroid self corrected. As far as the mug goes... Had an I fusion on Tuesday and another 4 hour infusion today. Tomorrow I go in for blood ( hemoglobin). It seems like it's always something. Did you have cisplatin? I think that's what killing my mag.
    Karen
  • mopar
    mopar Member Posts: 1,972 Member
    #5
    I DON'T THINK I EVEN HAVE A THYROID ANYMORE
    It's been a HUGE issue for me, Carlene. Started with the fact I couldn't lose this additional weight. Then I became soooooo fatigued I couldn't stand it. That lead to my hair issues - dry, lifeless, like doll hair, and losing it. My blood pressure got so low (my normal is about 106/60) that I had a rapid heart rate, felt like I couldn't get oxygen to my brain, just like when I was on chemo. Low, or should I say NO libido. Well, here I am 5 years after hypothyroidism diagnosis, still only on 1 grain of Armour Thyroid, and no improvement whatsoever. I see a homeopathic doctor, but also asked my GP to please reconsider upping the dosage or changing the meds. Both aren't doing it. I've researched and researched for years, and came across info by Mary Shoman who had dealt with the same thing. She says (and I agree) that it is one of the most misdiagnosed dilemmas and once they figure it out, no one treats it appropriately. I've already done other things to help boost my thyroid, but I believe that the chemo and all CT scans I have had with TRIPLE radioactive iodine contrast (for 10 years) is the culprit. In addition, having had over 60 lymph nodes removed in two surgeries doesn't help the situation either. I struggle with thyroid issues every day. I feel for you.

    (((HUGS)))

    Monika
  • Hissy_Fitz
    Hissy_Fitz Member Posts: 1,834
    #6
    msfanciful said:

    Hi Carlene,
    Not so much the
    Hi Carlene,

    Not so much the thyroid for me , however; of late more-so my magnesium levels?

    Seems this is another side-effect of chemo long after done with it? It also seems to be what one can predisposed for anyway and just depending on that the chemo does the rest...I've had to have 2 infusions in 2 weeks. Adult levels are supposed to be at least l.5 and my first reading was .08. After the infusion, the level was up to only 1.2, so I had another. I don't know what it will be but go figure huh?

    Do you think you'll have to continue gauging your thyroid levels now?

    I hope once I get back to normal levels thats, that.

    We'll see,

    Sharon

    Sharon....my doctor will
    Sharon....my doctor will keep testing my thyroid every couple of months, adjusting the meds as needed, until I test within the normal range.

    I have taken thyroid meds for a long time, but since I started chemo, every time I see my PCP for labs, my thyroid tests low. In the last year my meds have gone from 15mg to 30, to 45, to 60, and now 90mg.

    Carlene
  • Hissy_Fitz
    Hissy_Fitz Member Posts: 1,834
    #7
    mopar said:

    I DON'T THINK I EVEN HAVE A THYROID ANYMORE
    It's been a HUGE issue for me, Carlene. Started with the fact I couldn't lose this additional weight. Then I became soooooo fatigued I couldn't stand it. That lead to my hair issues - dry, lifeless, like doll hair, and losing it. My blood pressure got so low (my normal is about 106/60) that I had a rapid heart rate, felt like I couldn't get oxygen to my brain, just like when I was on chemo. Low, or should I say NO libido. Well, here I am 5 years after hypothyroidism diagnosis, still only on 1 grain of Armour Thyroid, and no improvement whatsoever. I see a homeopathic doctor, but also asked my GP to please reconsider upping the dosage or changing the meds. Both aren't doing it. I've researched and researched for years, and came across info by Mary Shoman who had dealt with the same thing. She says (and I agree) that it is one of the most misdiagnosed dilemmas and once they figure it out, no one treats it appropriately. I've already done other things to help boost my thyroid, but I believe that the chemo and all CT scans I have had with TRIPLE radioactive iodine contrast (for 10 years) is the culprit. In addition, having had over 60 lymph nodes removed in two surgeries doesn't help the situation either. I struggle with thyroid issues every day. I feel for you.

    (((HUGS)))

    Monika

    Monika....I think one grain
    Monika....I think one grain is 60mg, so I am taking 1 1/2 grains of AT. I didn't really have increased symptoms, or didn't notice them, which is not surprising, since the chemo can mimic the signs of low thyroid.

    Has you GP tested your thyroid? Seems like that would be the quickets, and most effective way to tell what's up with your symptoms.

    Carlene

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