My Thyroid Story, So Far

I have blogged about some bits and pieces of my thyroid situation during the last several months, but since I am approaching another step in the whole process, I thought I would share my whole thyroid story, so far, all in one place.
Until last fall, I had never really thought a lot about my thyroid.  I knew I had one, but I didn't really know much about what its purpose was.  I have learned a lot about the thyroid and all the different thyroid problems since then!  The thyroid is a butterfly-shaped gland in your neck that produces hormones that control your metabolism.  Problem thyroids can be over-active, under-active, enlarged, or lumpy.

I went to see my doctor last fall, and while I was there, he noticed that my thyroid was enlarged.  He told me that is is quite common for women to develop a thyroid problem after having a baby (Maddie was about 6 months old at that time), but he sent me for an ultrasound to check it out.  My ultrasound showed that I had a 5 cm nodule (growth) on the left side of my thyroid.  My doctor referred me to a surgeon, who recommended removing the left side of my thyroid (a partial thyroidectomy).  My surgeon sent me for a biopsy, because though uncommon, nodules can be cancerous, and if cancer is found in the thyroid, the entire gland must be removed.  I had my biopsy in November, and the results showed that I had a benign follicular nodule.  When I saw my surgeon again, he said that though my nodule was large, it was benign, and since it wasn't causing any breathing or swallowing issues, we could wait 6 months and reevaluate it.
In the meantime, I saw my doctor again.  He sent me for a second ultrasound, and he referred me to an endocrinologist for a second opinion.  The second ultrasound showed that my nodule had grown to 6 cm.  I saw the endocrinologist for the first time in May.  He ordered a bunch of blood work, and he sent me for a second biopsy.  The blood work said that my thyroid levels were in the normal range, but my second biopsy showed that I had a follicular lesion of undetermined significance.  My endocrinologist felt that just by the nodule size alone, I should really have the left side of my thyroid removed, but with the atypical biopsy results, he recommended getting it done this summer.

After my second biopsy

I set up another appointment with my surgeon, and Jim and I went to see him a few weeks ago.  As we talked through the surgery with him, he recommended my getting a total thyroidectomy - removing the entire thyroid.  With a partial thyroidectomy, there is a chance of not needing hormone replacement medication afterwards.  However, if I got a partial thyroidectomy, and cancer was found, I would have to go back and have a second surgery to remove the rest of my thyroid.  A total thyroidectomy would require me to be on thyroid medication for the rest of my life, but after the surgery, I would be able to just move on with treating the cancer (if needed) and recovery, without having to go through another surgery.  After some research and prayer, I have decided to go ahead with a total thyroidectomy on August 6.
We were able to fit in a little trip to South Carolina to see my family last week, and my parents have come back to Michigan with us to help with the kids during my surgery and for a few days after I come home.  From what I have read, the surgery should not too bad, as far as surgeries go.  I will have a scar on my neck, which should fade to almost nothing after a year or two.  I have been adding some scarves to my scarf collection and pinning scarf-tying tutorials on Pinterest in hopes of covering up my scar as it heals.

My current scarf collection

If I do end up having thyroid cancer, I will probably have to go through a radioactive Iodine treatment a few weeks after my surgery, which will kill all of the remaining thyroid tissue (and hopefully any remaining cancer cells).  That would most likely involve another hospital stay and at least several days of being quarantined from my family since I would be radioactive!  It would also delay the start of my hormone replacement therapy, which would cause me to feel pretty rough for those weeks between the surgery and the radioactive Iodine treatment.  We are obviously hoping that I do not have cancer, but we are praying for grace and strength to get through these next few weeks, whatever they hold.
I will update about my surgery and whatever the following weeks hold for me as I can.  It is difficult to go through the uncertainties of medical procedures, and I hope that by sharing my experiences, I can be a help and encouragement to others who face this situation in the future.  I would appreciate your prayers on Tuesday morning as I have my surgery!

Thyroid Biopsy Update

In the weeks while I waited for my biopsy, I did what many people do - I read about other people's biopsy and thyroid treatment experiences on the Internet.  After reading several people's stories, I was pretty nervous!  I had to stop reading after a while because it wasn't helping; it was actually making me feel worse about my upcoming tests and surgery.  Jim reminded me that most people who post their stories on the Internet have bad experiences or have crazy stories to tell, and that the people with normal experiences don't usually share them because they aren't very interesting.  I am happy to say that my biopsy experience was quite boring and normal, but I want to share it anyway, because I thought it might be helpful to share a "good" biopsy experience.

My biopsy was scheduled for 9:30 last Wednesday morning, but I was supposed to be at the radiology department of the hospital by 9:00.  After I checked in, the receptionist led me right back to a changing room, and Jim got settled in the waiting room.  The staff had me change out of my shirt and put on a gown over the rest of my clothes - mainly because of the solution they were going to use to clean my neck.  They didn't want my shirt to be stained.  I waited in the changing room waiting room until 9:30, and then the technician came to get me.  Before she walked me back, she popped out to the waiting room to let Jim know that they were going to be starting my test and that I should be done in about an hour.  We thought that was a thoughtful touch.

As we walked back to the ultrasound room, the technician explained the biopsy procedure to me and told me that she had had four thyroid biopsies herself and that they weren't too bad.  I was having an ultra-sound guided fine needle aspiration, where my neck would be numbed, and then a doctor would take six tissue samples, using thin little needles to collect the samples.  They used ultrasound equipment so they could see exactly what they were doing.  When we got into the ultrasound room, I lay down on a bed and had an ultrasound done on my neck.  Once that was done, the technician covered me with a warm blanket (the BEST thing about being in the hospital) and went to get the nurse and the physician's assistant who was going to be doing my biopsy.  The PA came in first and walked me through the procedure again, and then a nurse came in to ask a few health questions and take my blood pressure.

The biopsy itself was pretty quick and easy - much better that I was expecting it to be!  They cleaned and draped my neck before they began to numb it.  The PA had told me that the numbing was the only pain I should feel during the procedure, and she told me that it would be a pinch and a burn and that I might also feel pain in my left ear.  I felt the pinch, but it never really burned, and I didn't feel anything in my ear.  Before I knew it, she had started collecting tissue samples.  The little needles did not hurt at all.  It felt like the PA was gently rubbing her finger back and forth on my neck.  The biopsy only took about 10 minutes.

After the biopsy, the PA put a band-aid on my neck, and the ultrasound tech gave me an ice pack and some orange juice.  The nurse came back in and took my blood pressure again and went through a few instructions with me.  She told me to relax for the rest of the day and to take Tylenol for any pain.  I was also told not to lift more that 10 pounds for the next 24 hours.  She walked me back to the changing room, and I was done! I noticed in the changing room mirror that my neck was already swollen in the biopsy site (it looked like I had swallowed a golf ball), and it was a bit stiff and sore, but really not too bad.  I changed clothes and went out to meet Jim.

Some very kind friends helped with our children that morning.  One friend took Drew to school that morning and picked him up afterwards.  She called on her way home and asked if she could keep him for lunch and for a while that afternoon too.  He had a great time playing with his buddies, and it gave me some time to relax and rest.  Another friend kept Maddie for us, and it was wonderful to know that she was being well-cared for, and it was nice that we didn't have to take her to the hospital with us.

Jim took the whole day off, which was so helpful, especially with my lifting restrictions that day.  Maddie is well over 10 pounds now, so he did all the changing and lifting for the rest of the day.  He also got me a Diet Coke with vanilla from Sonic - my FAVORITE - which made my afternoon a little nicer.  

My neck was kind of sore and swollen, and it did bruise up a little. I had two very small round bruises, which have just about faded away completely now, a week later.  I used my frozen rice pack on my neck a few times that first day, and I took some Tylenol.  By the next day, I felt pretty good, and by the third day, I felt back to normal. 

After a week of waiting for results, I drove out to the hospital yesterday, where I was able to get a copy of my biopsy results.  We were so thankful to find out that my thyroid nodule is benign and that I do not have cancer!  What a wonderful answer to prayer!  I will still be having surgery at some time in the coming months, so I would appreciate your continued prayers!

I know that this post was long and kind of medical, so I have a few pictures to share.

Drew had moved on from Thomas, but after his afternoon with his friends the day of my biopsy, he is back to playing with his trains again (I am SO happy - I was missing Thomas)!  Maddie likes to go into Drew's room and play with the trains too.

Our friends' adoption agency did a bowling fundraiser on Saturday, and Drew and Jim bowled.  Maddie and I went along to watch.  Here's Maddie with our friend, Kevin.

The bowlers selecting their balls.

The balls are still a bit heavy for Drew.  Wii bowling is much easier for him.

Cheering for the other bowlers.

Another turn.

Drew had lots of fun with his friends.

I will be back with another post tomorrow to announce the winner of the Tiny Prints giveaway.  There is still time to enter!