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Last year I was in the hospital for some testing and by way of chance they found I had some nodules on my thyroid (had a cat scan done for something else). At that point I was told to have an ultrasound (which I did) . Primary told me my nodules were not that large and was not overly concerned but wanted a follow-up ultrasound in about 6 months- well fast forward a year later and another neck scan later, for again, something else and was reminded to have my thyroid ultrasounded as those nodules of course are there.
Had my repeat ultrasound yesterday and am being referred to a Surgeon to see if they want to do a fine needle aspiration on them because they grew a tiny bit. I cannot help but be worried. With words like heterogenous mass or a hetero comple mass, well, it just scares me.
I have nodules on both my right and my left lobes. They are not terribly big, but there nonetheless. They cannot be seen by looking at my neck or can they be felt.
From what I understand this is a common thing? Is this true.
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Hey, Denise. Nodules are pretty common. Ultrasound is best to get a good picture of the nodules. If your nodules are a certain size, then fine needle biopsy is the usual course. The best way is to get it done by someone who has experience doing them, be it a surgeon, endocrinologist or a radiologist. Ask how many of those procedures they have done in the last year. Nodules can be solid, fluid filled or a combination - don't worry about the terminology.
Good luck - hope that answered your question and if you have any more, feel free to ask.
Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the number of moments that take our breath away...(unkown) • Go With The Flow • Thyroid Support Group
Thanks Chenille! I have a call into the Surgeon at the Oncology center per my drs request.
My measurements are: 1.3x1.3x1.4 cm
1.5x0.7x1.5
Mid R Lobe
1.8x0.9x1.1
Mid L Lobe
6x5x6 mm
Im not sure what those top two measurments are from?
oh and my TSH levels are 1.41 and back in October they were 0.59
Do they seem low to you?
Denise - I think the top 2 numbers are in cm? Then likely refer to the size of your thyroid lobes - the measurements in mm are the nodule size.
Just for comparison - I looked up my old US and my largest nodules were 35x17x22 mm and 16x13x14 mm.
The surgeon at the oncology center is a great choice if you need to have a biopsy, and don't worry - if you need to have it done, it's not a big deal. When I had mine done, my doc used a local anesthetic and I didn't feel a thing.
As to your TSH - while both are in a normal range - what you don't know is what is normal for you. I just can't stress enough how inportant it is for you to have a complete thyroid profile - that means TSH, FT4, FT3, total T3 and total T4 as well as screening test for thyroid antibodies. It's also important to get those first 3 tests done more than once so you can establish what your normal levels are. If at some point you require thyroid supplements, you will have those labs as backup as to where you seem to function best.
That being said - the change from .59 to 1.41 is a significant change - how do you feel? Were you sick in betwen that time? That can possibly influence the results as well. The problem with just doing the TSH, is that it doesn't mean a whole lot if you don't have the FT4 and FT3 levels to see which of those were lower. I bet you had TSH levels done when you were pregnant - see if you can get hold of those to compare and see which of those TSH levels are closer to your normal.
Start a file and keep a copy of all your labs.
Hang in there, I know this can be a stressful time.
Cheryl
Yes, they are in cm..I just got a copy of my actual report..
The Surgeon at the Oncology center looked at my report and says a FNB is recommended...however, she stated that is "Not Urgent" so my appt is not until September 22nd.
mta..I am very anxious about the procedure and of course what the results are going to be.
Thanks Chenille!
I actually had to reschedule that appt, so I went yesterday. It was NOT fun. I mean they numbed the area and first few she did were okay, I felt the pressure. However, with the last nodule she had to do, oooo boy.
So now I wait a few days...