Recently, the National Cancer Institute has presented a medical report stating that in the country, each year, over 56,000 cases of thyroid cancer are diagnosed! If you or someone you love has been diagnosed with it, the doctor along with his expert care team will come up with the most effective treatment plan depending on the type and the stage of cancer. Various medical studies have shown that most of the cases of this cancer can be treated with proper treatment.

Herein, we discuss some of the best ways to treat thyroid cancer.

Surgery
Removing all or most of the thyroid is possible through surgery. The effective operations include

• Removing a particular thyroid portion. This process is also known as thyroid lobectomy.
• Removing the lymph nodes present in the neck.
• Removing the entire or most of the thyroid. This process is also known as a thyroidectomy.

Such surgeries may involve certain risk factors such as infection, bleeding, damage in the parathyroid glands, accidental nerve damage resulting in hoarseness, vocal cord paralysis, difficulty in breathing, or soft voice. Talking to the doctor regarding the risk factors before getting surgery is advised.

Radioactive iodine
After thyroidectomy, this treatment is often used to destroy the microscopic areas of thyroid cancer. Also, when cancer recurs after the treatment or spreads to other body parts, radioactive iodine treatment is used. Some of the side effects of this treatment may include

• Dry eyes
• Fatigue
• Nausea
• Altered sense of smell or taste
• Dry mouth

The person undergoing this treatment will be given proper instructions regarding the precautions that have to be taken during the treatment so that other people do not get affected by the radiation. It is advisable for the patient to avoid close contact with pregnant women and children temporarily.

Palliative care
This specialized medical care focuses on providing relief to patients from painful symptoms of serious illnesses. The main objective of this extra layer of support is to complement the ongoing treatment of thyroid cancer. This special care is mostly used while other aggressive treatments like radiation therapy, chemotherapy, or surgery are going on.

Chemotherapy
In this treatment process, chemicals are used to kill the cancer cells. Typically, it is given as an infusion through the vein. Although chemotherapy is not a very common way to treat cancer caused by thyroid, still it can actually work for some patients, who do not respond to other forms of therapies at all.

External radiation therapy
When a patient cannot undergo the surgery and cancer keeps on spreading even after getting the radioactive iodine treatment, external radiation therapy is used. If the doctors realize that there is a high risk of its recurrence even after surgery, this therapy can be recommended.

Other than all the above-mentioned ways, thyroid hormone therapy and medications are also available to treat thyroid cancer. Depending on the cancer type and the stage, your doctor can suggest the best treatment plan.