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i have a thyroid cancer and had my thyriod removed. the doctor told me to undergo a radioactive iodine after the surgery. i am too scared to undergo this treatment and to spend a week, alone in a hospital room. i am still worried that the cancer might come back. can somebody share to me your experiences with radioactive iodine if you have done it.
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5 Responses
Your doctor is recommending Radioactive Iodine (RAI) ablation because it can sometime be difficult to remove all the tissue possibly leaving cancerous tissue in your neck. Since thyroid tissue is the only tissue that will take up Iodine, it is an effective method for making sure all of the thyroid tissue in your body is killed.
Radioactive iodine treatment has few side effects, and these occur infrequently.
* A sore throat may occur a few days after the treatment, which can be treated with acetaminophen.
* Rarely, the salivary glands may swell, which is caused by the iodine and not the radioactivity. Some physicians believe that sucking hard candies for a few days can prevent this.
* Mild nausea may develop for a few hours after the iodine is taken, so it is best not to eat two hours before and two hours after.
While we certainly recommend finding a treatment plan that works for you in consultation with a qualified doctor, without seeing specifics, what your doctor recommends sounds like it conforms with recommended guidelines for the treatment of papillary or follicular thyroid cancer.
Besides our info on thyroid cancer - http://www.endocrineweb.com/thyroidca.html, I suggest the following resource: http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/pdq/treatment/thyroid/Patient
Good luck and please let the community know what you decide to do
I completely know what your going through, I had my thyroid removed and then 6 months later went through the radioactive idodine treatment. I was freaked out as well. You will sleep a lot, so the isolation isn't so bad.
As for the treatment, you simply take a pill with a radioactive dose in it. I had some jaw tightening and pain. As well you can experience some nausea. My best advice, bring lots of things to do, brings comfty pillows, and drink excessive amounts of fluids. The jaw can tighten, almost hurt, chew gum and suck on lolipops/candies to help with this.
The idea is that the radioactive iodine will attract to any tissue left, thus showing up on the body scan you will have later. Even if something shows up on the scan, it is expected/hoped that the radioactivity remaining in you will kill it.
Unfortunately, the worst part is waiting for scans, results etc. You will need an ultrasound later to confirm that the treatment worked. In my case, I'm about to do the radioactive iodine treatment for the second time. My hospital did allow me to complete the isolated phase at home. They only allow this sometimes, and if you have your own bathroom and bedroom that can be strictly yours. This was an option I found difficult finding, but was definately worth it - much more comfortable.
Hope this helps.
Thank you for the info. It gives me hope talking to somebody who went through the radioactive iodine treatment. I have been skipping my check-ups with the doctor. Think I'm avoiding those agonizing moments waiting for the results. But I'm probably going to the doctor this weekend, it really bothers me everyday thinking that something might grow back.
When will you have your second treatment?
hi im also about to undergo RAI after thyroid being removed the suggested to have it.. but i escape for almost 7 months but now i wanted to comply it.. also i have to know about the things i do before the treatment.. please update me..
will you please update me about RAI.. its somewhat i feared..im diagnosed Papillary thyroid Cancer..what should i take precationsssssssssssss?