Post 3320: Thyroid matters!

It appears that 2026 is going to be all about health-related stuff if the first six months are anything to go on. That being said, I’ve just come back from seeing my surgeon in a follow-up from having half my thyroid removed on June 8th, and it appears that all is well there despite the fact there was some (low risk) cancer in the pathology report. So perhaps I’m in the clear for a bit?

I first wrote about my thyroid here back in 2012 when I was cleared of thyroid cancer following a series of needle-aspiration biopsies which were triggered by my doctor at the time observing the growth of a goiter on the left side of my neck. I was sent to a surgeon who was so gung-ho to operate that he told me I should have my whole thyroid removed if there was “even a 10% chance” of cancer. He was so eager to find that cancer that he sent me for multiple ultrasounds and 3 biopsies, the final one refused by the biopsy doctor because he thought I was being overtested for something of minimal risk.

Because the thyroid is an important gland, I was in no hurry to have it removed, even if I did have an unsightly bulge at one side of my throat. I did a bunch of reading at that time and discovered that the majority of thyroid cancers are very low-risk and develop very slowly over the course of a lifetime, never becoming deadly. I had decided for myself that even if cancer was discovered, I would take a monitoring and assessment approach rather than moving right to surgery and chemically invasive procedures.Despite my surgeon’s eagerness, I could find no reason to radically alter my body’s bio-chemical mechanism for what seemed to be mostly cosmetic reasons.

I moved to Gabriola and cut ties with that surgeon, opting for an annual ultrasound to monitor the growth of nodules and swelling. About three years ago and I noticed that my goiter was getting larger, and I was getting a strained voice when I sang and also could feel the pressure of my thyroid when I swallowed, at the same time I got some funky TSH levels that indicated hyperthyroidism (though I had no symptoms of any kind). This lead to a (what I think is now incorrect) diagnosis of Graves disease and some extra scanning of my now-much-larger thyroid. There was no indication of any cancerous growth, but the new surgeon I was referred to told me that removal of the left hemisphere of my thyroid could make things more comfortable and prevent problems later on as continued growth was likely. At this point, I was in agreement with having half my thyroid removed and put on a long wait list (because no cancer was suspected, the surgery was treated as elective).

Two years later and I got a call quite out of the blue that there was surgery space in 10 days time and could I fit it into my schedule? Given the fact I really wanted this done, I *did* fit it into my schedule, and on June 8th I underwent surgery, staying overnight in Nanaimo General Hospital with discharge by noon the next day.

Despite the fact that the wait is long and our facilities are crowded – I had the most excellent care. And I mean, phenomenal. My surgeon, the anesthesiologist, the recovery room nurses and my morning nurse were all incredible – compassionate, caring, professional, personable – the works. I cannot say enough good things about the experience once I finally got a date booked.

The immediate recovery period was a bit rougher than I expected, but that’s just because I assumed I would come home and feel totally normal within 48 hours! That was not the case of course, and I took a week and a half off work during which time I puttered in my studio and sewed a bunch of summer clothes for myself. Last week I went to Ottawa to see a concert and had some more days off work, just wandering about. I’m now three weeks out of surgery now and finally feeling pretty normal except some soreness around my neck wound which is still healing.

Yesterday I went back to my surgeon for the follow-up visit and he told me that one of my thyroid nodules did, in fact, have cancer but it was exactly as I had learned all those year ago…. low-risk, slow growing, and requiring no follow-up of any kind. Removal of my left thyroid hemisphere removed all the cancer, and there is no need for any more treatment. He also affirmed the fact that I could have done nothing about it at all, and that if they knew there was cancer going in, they would have followed exactly the same course of action. The only thing knowing about the cancer would have done was bump me up in the priority queue for the surgery – but honestly, I would hate to take a spot from someone who was really *in need* when I was just experiencing discomfort.

As for the Graves – I have never been convinced by this diagnosis and believe the test results were strongly influenced by a combination of my thyroid swelling and perimenopausal fluctuations in the body. Since the initial diagnostic period I have experienced no symptoms of it, and my TSH levels returned to normal shortly after testing. My surgeon agreed that a false positive here was a definite possibility, especially because my left thyroid was so swollen by the time it came out. Fingers crossed this is the case and we won’t hear anymore about that!

So now it’s just life back to normal for the most part. I will test later this summer to see what my TSH levels are doing and whether the right side of my thyroid picks up the slack on its own or needs pharmaceutical help, and more ultrasounds will be done in the next couple of years. These tests are already a standard part of my medical care and have been for years.

I have been walking a ton in the last week, but won’t return to weightlifting until mid-July since on Saturday we are off to music camp and then our cabin in the interior after that. My energy level is pretty good all things considered, and I’m looking forward to some times playing tunes by Shuswap Lake. So glad I could get the surgery and follow-up out of the way before the true start-up of summer.