Does thyroid cancer require surgery? Can thyroid cancer be treated without surgery?

Thyroid cancer actually has certain complications, but not every patient needs to undergo surgery. Instead, it should be combined with the individual's condition. In current medicine, there are actually many methods for treatment, such as radiotherapy, chemotherapy, or hormone replacement therapy, etc. However, if the situation is more serious, surgical treatment should also be chosen.

The occurrence of thyroid cancer is actually harmful and may even cause serious complications, so many people will receive treatment as soon as they suffer from this disease. However, whether surgery is necessary every time has become a question that everyone is very concerned about. So, is surgery necessary for thyroid cancer?

1. Is surgery necessary for thyroid cancer?

Once thyroid cancer is diagnosed, there is no fixed answer as to whether surgery is needed. From current medical knowledge, it can be found that many thyroid cancer patients will find that the progression is very slow after diagnosis, and basically there will be no changes in 3, 5, 10 or 8 years, and there is no possibility of metastasis, so surgery is not needed at this time.

2. How to treat thyroid cancer

1. Radiation therapy

Radiation therapy can also be used as an adjuvant therapy, although in some cases it may be used as the primary treatment. Radiation therapy itself is a local treatment method that can effectively reduce the chance of recurrence. Radiation can be used with an external X-ray beam directed at the area, or administered by taking radioactive iodine orally. Most patients will have a good response after receiving radiation therapy, although they may have neck tightness, pain or swelling and feel red, but basically they will gradually disappear within 24 hours.

2. Chemotherapy

When thyroid cancer has metastasized to affect other parts of the body, chemotherapy may be an option to control the growth of cancer cells. Chemotherapy is a broad-based treatment that ensures that the entire body is not affected, but it may have side effects and patients receiving chemotherapy are more likely to get infections.

3. Hormone replacement therapy

For the treatment of thyroid cancer, you can choose to remove part of it or all of it, which will cause the patient's thyroid function to enter a state of hypothyroidism, such as fatigue, weight gain and dry skin, so hormone replacement therapy should also be chosen. This treatment lasts a lifetime and can achieve very good results.