Health check-up detects asymptomatic thyroid cancer

Many people accidentally discover thyroid cancer during a routine health check-up and receive timely treatment, which does not affect their life expectancy and does not affect their quality of life like normal people.

Thyroid cancer (malignant goiter) occurs when cells in the thyroid gland develop mutations that cause them to multiply rapidly, forming tumors. Goiter in general and thyroid cancer in particular are affected by factors: geographic region, gender, genetics. In the early stages, many patients have no symptoms, so it is difficult to detect abnormalities for examination.

However, according to Master, Doctor Tran Nguyen Quynh Tram (Department of Endocrinology - Diabetes, Tam Anh General Hospital, Ho Chi Minh City), the number of people with thyroid cancer being detected is increasing, partly thanks to advances in medicine. Advanced methods help doctors diagnose the disease quickly. Many patients also accidentally discover thyroid cancer during routine health check-ups, CT scans, MRIs, ultrasounds, etc.

Dr. Quynh Tram added that thyroid cancer is one of the cancers with the best prognosis. Fatalities are rare and mainly occur in patients whose cancer has spread outside the neck to other organs. In the later stages, the tumor develops and spreads to the soft tissue of the neck, lymph nodes, lungs, and bones; making treatment more difficult. According to the American Thyroid Association, about 30% of cases have metastatic cancer, mainly to the lymph nodes in the neck; 1-4% of cancers metastasize outside the neck to other organs such as the lungs and bones.

Recently, Tam Anh General Hospital in Ho Chi Minh City has received and successfully treated many cases of thyroid cancer. For example, recently, Ms. Nguyen Ngoc Anh Thuy (53 years old, District 5) was diagnosed with early stage thyroid cancer. Dr. Tram said that Ms. Thuy was diagnosed with early stage thyroid cancer so treatment was favorable, did not affect her life expectancy and she could live like a normal person.

Ms. Thuy recounted that during a routine health check-up at her company, she discovered a nodule in the left lobe of her thyroid gland, suspected of being cancerous. She went to two major hospitals and Tam Anh General Hospital in Ho Chi Minh City for examination.

Doctor Tram examines and adjusts hormone dosage for patients. Photo: Nguyen Tram

Master, Doctor Le Thi Ngoc Hang (Department of Cardiology - Thoracic, Cardiovascular Center) examined and found that her neck was swollen, with a mass moving with the rhythm of swallowing. Ultrasound recorded a goiter in the left lobe of the thyroid gland, measuring 6.6 cm. The patient continued to have a fine needle aspiration of the thyroid gland (FNAC) suspected of papillary thyroid cancer.

Dr. Hang and the surgical team removed the patient's thyroid gland using a specialized ultrasonic knife, which helped reduce bleeding, shorten surgery time, and cause less damage to surrounding tissue. After 90 minutes of surgery, the patient's health was stable, with no effect on his voice, and he was discharged after two days.

Doctor Hang (left) and the team of doctors from the Cardiovascular Center perform thyroid surgery on a patient. Photo: Nguyen Tram

After surgery, many thyroid cancer patients may need additional treatment with radioactive iodine to destroy remaining cancer cells and reduce the risk of cancer recurrence. In Ms. Thuy's case, the biopsy and pathology results showed that the tumor was not invasive and there were no more cancer cells, so there was no need to use additional radioactive iodine. However, because the entire thyroid gland had been removed, there was no longer thyroid hormone for the body's activities, so the patient had to use thyroid hormone medication for life.

Dr. Tram advises people to have regular health check-ups every 6 months or once a year. If thyroid cancer is detected, the doctor will plan timely and effective treatment. Patients should take medication as prescribed, have regular check-ups with an endocrinologist - diabetes specialist, and not arbitrarily follow folk methods that can make the disease worse.

Nguyen Tram

In order to provide information about thyroid disease, dangerous complications and effective treatments; Tam Anh General Hospital System organizes an online consultation program with the topic "Learn about goiter, thyroid cancer and current treatment advances".

The program will be broadcast at 8:00 p.m. on May 11 on the VnExpress fanpage, with the participation of doctors from Tam Anh General Hospital, Ho Chi Minh City: Dr. Lam Van Hoang, Department of Endocrinology - Diabetes; Master, Doctor, Specialist II Doan Minh Trong, Department of Breast Surgery, Master, Doctor Le Thi Ngoc Hang (Department of Cardiovascular - Thoracic Surgery). Readers can send questions here for answers.

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