Mass on the Thyroid - Facts Regarding Thyroid Nodules
Your thyroid controls a host of vital bodily functions. You can assume of this - the most important of your endocrine glands - as a master regulator. Located inside your neck just below your Adam's apple, the thyroid controls the speed at which your body burns energy (calories). It conjointly controls the proper functioning of other hormones.
When your thyroid is healthy, it's one of those glands that you will never see, feel or even want to suppose about. It just silently and faithfully will its job, creating positive that your body's ability to access and burn energy is humming along just fine.
But, the thyroid can develop a variety of problems, a number of which might need the removal of part or all your thyroid.
Common Thyroid Issues
There a range of potential diseases of the thyroid, as well as Hashimoto's disease, Graves' disease, hyperthyroidism and hypothyroidism. All of these involve the thyroid manufacturing too much or too very little thyroid hormone.
Another common thyroid downside is that of a lump or mass on the gland itself.
Mass on the Thyroid
You will have noticed a visual lump or bump within the neck area on yourself, a loved one or an acquaintance. Or, a medical skilled could have discovered such a lump when performing a routine checkup or a CT, MRI or ultrasound scan of the neck. In some cases, this lump may turn out to be a thyroid nodule.
There are two main reasons for a lumpy thyroid: a nodule or a thyroid enlargement.
Enlarged thyroids are completely different than nodules in that enlarged thyroids typically have an effect on the complete gland, rather than just having bumps here or there on one or each of the lobes. An enlarged thyroid - additionally referred to as a goiter - may be a benign (not cancerous) condition often caused by iodine deficiency. Goiter can additionally be caused by Hashimoto's disease or Graves' disease (see on top of). Goiter may not need to be treated, or in some case it is treated with antithyroid drugs, removal of the thyroid, or iodine-131 treatments.
On the other handle, thyroid nodules are more specific to 1 or a lot of areas of thyroid, instead of a generalized enlargement.
Facts regarding Thyroid Nodules
The overwhelming majority - regarding ninety five% - of thyroid nodules are benign, which means that they are not cancerous. After all, thyroid nodules rarely require treatment if they're determined to be:
* not cancerous (benign)
* not causing any different troubles, such as pressing on alternative structure in the neck or body
* not causing the gland to create an excessive amount of thyroid hormone
A simple biopsy can be in a position to work out whether the nodule is benign or cancerous. If the nodule is cancerous or is otherwise inflicting issues, the physician could opt for to treat it via hormone pills, radioactive iodine (iodine-131), or direct injections into the gland with ethyl alcohol.
In some cases, thyroid surgery is needed to get rid of the thyroid completely. Additionally referred to as a thyroidectomy, this kind of treatment has very high success rates, and patients will sometimes expect a sleek recovery.
Should your doctor decide that your thyroid is to be removed via surgery because of a mass or nodule being discovered there, this could not be a cause for concern. By following the right steps after surgery, you can expect a full recovery and, with the assistance of thyroid supplements, not even notice the absence of this terribly important gland.
Author Resource:
Denise Howard has been writing articles online for nearly 2 years now. Not only does this author specialize in Thyroid, you can also check out latest website about
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