At present, thyroid cancer is becoming more and more common. Some people worry that pregnancy will be affected after the operation. Is it true?/You don't say.

Thyroid cancer is really common now, which is related to the increase of thyroid nodules. According to the data of tumor incidence in China, the incidence of thyroid cancer was 4.9% in 2000-2003, and it was 20. 1% in 2003-20/year, with a significant increase. The cause of tumor is very complicated, and as mentioned in the previous article, it is nothing more than the result of genetic and environmental factors. However, the surgical treatment of differentiated thyroid cancer is relatively effective and the progress of the disease is relatively slow. Don't worry too much. Because many female patients are at childbearing age, they are worried about fertility problems. I don't think people should worry too much, especially patients with differentiated thyroid cancer can get pregnant after surgery.

We know that thyroid cancer generally develops from thyroid nodules, and the increase of thyroid nodules is related to lifestyle, radiation, stress, diet and environment. Many experts also believe that the high incidence of thyroid nodules is related to the improvement of examination technology and health awareness, and the screening of thyroid gland by physical examination is also very common, resulting in a high detection rate of thyroid nodules. It should be said that most thyroid nodules are benign, especially Hashimoto's thyroiditis, which is an inflammatory nodule, and only about 5%- 15% of thyroid nodules are malignant. Therefore, the prevention of thyroid nodules needs to start with lifestyle, which is also emphasized to patients in clinical work. I hope everyone must pay attention to a healthy lifestyle. Many people still have the idea that if a doctor doesn't prescribe medicine in a hospital, it means that he didn't see a doctor, and if he hangs up, he says that he understands spending money. This is definitely not a joke. This is what I often encounter, of course, a few patients.

Clinically, we see that many thyroid nodules or cancers are very small, with more than 1 cm, which means that it is a good thing to find them earlier. These patients are generally asymptomatic in clinic. Even if thyroid cancer is suspected, many surgeons think it can be observed, and they can observe it regularly, especially by reviewing thyroid ultrasound, without being too active in surgical treatment. This is mainly based on foreign research, and it is considered that there is not much difference between surgical and non-surgical patients in this case. But I also want to emphasize that this is under the condition of good follow-up and monitoring, which does not mean that you will leave it alone. Because some pathological types of thyroid cancer are still easy to metastasize and cannot be taken lightly. In addition, personal psychological quality is also very important, and being on tenterhooks all day is not good for the disease. Some patients may not feel sick until thyroid nodules are found. After discovering thyroid nodules, various symptoms began to appear. The most common are throat discomfort, foreign body sensation, poor sleep and so on. Maybe we should consider the influence of psychological factors. In fact, early detection of nodules is also a double-edged sword. The good thing is that it can be found early and treated in time. The bad thing is that it may increase the psychological burden of patients.

Thyroid cancer is different from other malignant tumors. Most of them belong to differentiated thyroid carcinoma, and the most common is papillary carcinoma, which progresses slowly. Only a few special types of thyroid cancer will have extrathyroid invasion, vascular invasion and distant metastasis, and it is easy to recur and the prognosis is relatively poor. As a solid tumor, surgery is the first choice for the treatment of thyroid cancer. But when to operate may need to be considered in combination with the actual situation of the patient. As I said just now, some of them are very small and can even be observed. If the tumor is found to be enlarged, there is a tendency of lymph node metastasis, or the patient is unwilling to observe, surgery can be considered.

Even after the operation, the patient need not worry. Relatively speaking, thyroid surgery is very safe and has a high cure rate. At present, many small thyroid cancers can be treated by thyroidectomy, and some patients do not even need alternative treatment. Even some patients with lymph node metastasis can be treated with iodine 13 1 to remove the residual thyroid or metastatic focus if the operation cannot be completely removed. After these treatments, TSH inhibition therapy can also be performed. TSH suppression therapy is different from simple thyroid hormone supplementation therapy. The former needs to take a little more thyroid hormone than the body needs, so that the body can reach a slight hyperthyroidism state, thereby inhibiting the growth of tumor cells that may remain in the body and avoiding the metastasis and recurrence of thyroid cancer.

Many people are worried about whether they can get pregnant after thyroid cancer surgery. I don't think everyone should worry too much. Although TSH is lower than the normal range in TSH inhibition therapy, we can make corresponding adjustments according to the patient's situation. Low TSH has little effect on pregnancy, and may also keep T3 and T4 within the normal range.

In short, thyroid cancer, mainly differentiated thyroid cancer, is a relatively "good" malignant tumor with slow progress and less metastasis, which is more convenient to monitor. However, we should not take it lightly. After all, it is a tumor, and about 30% of patients will have recurrence or metastasis. Long-term follow-up is necessary, which is strategically despised and tactically valued.