Thyroid cancer surgery

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coullmom
coullmom Posts: 133 Member
My 14 year old daughter is having thyroid removal surgery on Thursday, Just wanted to see who else has gone through this and what would you say was the hardest thing about it. Some people I have talked to say that it is a pretty easy surgery.

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  • coullmom
    coullmom Posts: 133 Member
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    oops! Posted that on the wrong board. Sorry
  • editorgrrl
    editorgrrl Posts: 7,060 Member
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    MFP has a Hypothyroidism and Hyperthyroidism group: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/forums/show/770-hypothyroidism-and-hyperthyroidism
  • elaine_des
    elaine_des Posts: 189 Member
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    I can't talk by personal experience but lot of people in my family had it done, including my mom. The hardest thing was that they had trouble leveling her calcium level and thyroid level after the surgery. Also she lost her salivary gland in the process so she has to be on medication to produce more saliva. This is the thing that bother her the most. The surgery itself went over well.
  • jottomatte
    jottomatte Posts: 1 Member
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    I am sorry your daughter has to go through this.To give you hope, I had my thyroid taken out completely just a little over a year ago because of thyroid cancer. I just had my one year check-up and there is no sign cancer. My surgery went really well and I healed up so the scar barely shows. The first dosage of Synthroid they put me on kept my levels even for almost a year, I just had to go a lower dosage last week. I am 46 and have had 2 C-sections so the surgery and after care were not as scary for me as they would have been when I was young. Two things they didn't warn me about that I found troubling after the surgery were: First, the stress on your system from the surgery can make ALOT of your hair fall out. At first I thought my thyroid levels must be messed up because I lost so much, but they were normal and eventually the loss stopped and my hair has begun to grow back in. The second issue was the pain medication gave me nasty headaches that were even worse for 24 hours after I quit taking them. I quit taking them after 5 days because the headaches were worse than the incision pain. They put me on vitamin D and Calcium (Tums) after the surgery in case the parathyroid glands stop working temporarily. Once you get the OK to apply anything to the incision, I recommend extra virgin coconut oil. It worked great and doesn't have any additives. If any lumpy scar tissue starts to form she can gently massage it with the coconut oil several times a day as she can tolerate it. I had one lumpy area but that made it disappear completely. They didn't use stitches for me but instead they used a surgical tape that eventually wore off on it's own. Make sure she doesn't pick up anything heavy for several weeks afterward. I know I started to feel better before the incision was "set" enough to carry a bag of groceries or a gallon of milk so it was hard to remember to let someone else do those things for me. I hope her surgery and recovery go as well as mine did. You will be in my prayers!
  • JulieE1002
    JulieE1002 Posts: 162 Member
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    I had the left lobe of my thyroid removed two years ago due to cancer. My surgery went very well and I recovered quickly (back to work in 5 days). Truthfully, the hardest part for me was sleeping. It was suggested to me that I sleep in a recliner for the first 2 - 3 nights. Once I got home I realized why! I would also suggest this for your daughter. Hair loss: Very scary, but normal. Because I only had the left lobe removed, I have not needed any medication, however, I did experience a weight gain. I have found that losing this weight has been difficult, but that may be because I am over 50. I wish you and your daughter the best of luck.
  • kathrynmac12
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    I know this is an old post but I was glad to read it. I have been told that my thyroid goiters are cancerous and that my thyroid will have to be removed completely.Reading these posts gave me a little insight and some comfort that everything will be alright. I hope you are all still doing well.
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