Thyroid surgery is a treatment option for thyroid cancer, hypothyroidism and massive goiter, or enlarged thyroid. According to endocrineweb.com, about 37,000 new thyroid cancer cases are diagnosed in the United States every year. However, 99 percent of growths on the thyroid are not cancerous. The type of thyroid surgery a patient receives for cancerous or noncancerous growths depends upon his diagnosis. As with any surgery, thyroid surgery does pose risks. A patient should discuss any concerns about a procedure with his physician.
Function
In cases of thyroid cancer, surgical removal of the thyroid is mandatory so that the malignant tumors do not spread to other parts of the body. However, thyroid surgery is not exclusively used in cancer patients. Surgery is also used on hypothyroid patients who have nodules growing on the thyroid. In rare instances, a patient will develop a goiter, which is a thyroid that is so large it is visibly noticeable from the outside of the body. Overactive thyroids that do not respond to other forms of treatment might also be surgically removed.
Types
Five types of thyroid surgeries exist: a lumpectomy, lobectomy, lobectomy with isthmusectomy, subtotal thyroidectomy, and total thyroidectomy. A lumpectomy is also referred to as a biopsy. During this procedure, only a small section of the thyroid gland is removed. A lobectomy removes half of the gland. This procedure is used for patients who have nodules that could become cancerous. In a lobectomy with isthmusectomy, the isthmus--or tissue between the two sides of the thyroid gland--is removed. During a subtotal thyroidectomy, most of the thyroid is removed, with only a small portion left behind. This procedure is used in a patient with cancer or with a goiter. A total thyroidectomy removes the whole gland to prevent cancer from spreading.
Process
A patient undergoing thyroid surgery will likely be put under anesthesia during the procedure, so she should not consume food or drinks after midnight before the surgery. Surgery can take up to two-and-a-half hours, during which the surgeon will make an incision about 4 inches in length into the neck, and then remove some or all of the thyroid gland. Once the surgery is complete and the patient has awakened, she will be required to recover in the hospital for about 24 hours. The patient can then drink and eat.
Considerations
Alternatives to surgery are available to thyroid patients, and these should be discussed with an endocrinologist. In cases of thyroid cancer, however, there is no alternative that physicians recommend, as there is a danger of tumors spreading and resulting in death.
After any type of thyroid surgery, thyroid hormone treatment will be required for life due to the absence of thyroid hormones in the body.
Warning
According to thyroid.org, a 2 percent chance exists that a patient will experience side effects of thyroid surgery. These side effects are most commonly found in individuals with thyroid cancer or in those with an extremely large goiter extending to the collarbone. Side effects include damage to the laryngeal nerve that results in permanent voice hoarseness; excessive bleeding that can lead to respiratory problems; and the development of hypoparathyroidism, which is a calcium deficiency as a result of the destruction of the parathyroid glands.
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