The "Good" Cancer

Excerpts from the article "The Good Cancer?" on CureToday.com. [As an FYI - as far as I know I have papillary thyroid cancer - but I will be asking for a copy of my path report at my appointment on July 2]

The Good Cancer?
BY CHARLOTTE HUFF

Thyroid cancer's high survival rate masks the sometimes tricky tumor.

The first biopsy on Julia McGuire’s thyroid came back negative, so the college student was regularly monitored for two years until, at one visit, the slight lump had swelled to the size of a walnut. Concerned about its recent surge in growth, her endocrinologist recommended removal, describing the surgery primarily as a precaution, although cancer was a possibility.

The 20-year-old wasn’t particularly worried until her phone rang one day with the biopsy results: stage 1 papillary thyroid cancer, the most common form of the disease.

“I think it was the most traumatic moment of my life,” says McGuire, now age 27. She underwent a second surgery to remove the remainder of her thyroid—a butterfly-shaped gland in the neck that regulates metabolism—and followed up with radioactive iodine to kill any lingering cancer cells. In the past seven years, she has largely moved on, with annual checkups as the only cancer reminder.

The treatment path for Rabbi Len Troupp unfolded much differently. In 1999, Troupp learned he had medullary thyroid cancer, a potentially more aggressive type, comprising fewer than 5 percent of all thyroid malignancies. Since then, Troupp has combated the cancer on several fronts, starting with the removal of his thyroid and lymph nodes in his neck and chest, followed by experimental drugs after the cancer spread to his liver and a lung, among other areas.

The Big Picture

About 37,000 Americans are diagnosed annually with thyroid cancer, a malignancy that can seem relatively benign, at least where cancer is concerned.

Overall, the five-year relative survival rate for thyroid cancer is 96.9 percent or better, as long as the malignancy is diagnosed while still confined to the thyroid or nearby lymph nodes, according to the National Cancer Institute’s Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) data.

About 90 percent of people develop either the papillary or follicular types, frequently considered treatable with surgery and radioactive iodine. Even if the malignancy can’t be knocked out completely by treatment, the cancer can often be controlled for years, in part because it can be slow-growing. But cancer survivors and treating physicians frequently wince at thyroid malignancies being described as the “good” cancer because it can throw curveballs.

The two less common types—medullary and anaplastic—can be far more aggressive and rarely respond to radioactive iodine therapy. Seemingly treatable types, such as papillary, can become less responsive over time to repeated radioactive iodine treatments. And regular checkups are crucial as recurrences can appear sometimes decades later, physicians say. In all, nearly 1,600 people die each year of thyroid cancer, according to NCI data.

Although McGuire’s tumor measured about an inch, the cancer hadn’t spread to the nearby lymph nodes. She worked treatment around her college schedule, completing surgery before her junior year and then returning home for radioactive iodine treatment over holiday break.

In retrospect, the stressful ordeal served as a wakeup call, McGuire says. She now works as an IT consultant and has assisted several cancer-related groups, including the Thyroid Cancer Survivors’ Association. “I went back to school and I did better in school. I just took things more seriously.”

How much of the thyroid is removed and whether radioactive iodine is recommended depends upon a number of factors, including the tumor’s size and the extent to which it has spread beyond the thyroid itself.

Age also can play a significant role. Younger men and women—those diagnosed before age 45—are more likely to respond better to radioactive iodine treatment than older patients, says Stephanie Lee, MD, PhD, associate chief of endocrinology, diabetes, and nutrition at Boston Medical Center. The cancer is considered stage 1 in that age group, as long as it hasn’t spread to distant organs, such as the lung.

For follicular and papillary malignancies, radioactive iodine therapy can serve as a magic bullet. That’s because the thyroid naturally pulls iodine into the gland to produce hormones needed to regulate the body’s metabolism. Thus, the radioactive iodine, an isotope usually given in liquid or pill form, is easily absorbed into the thyroid, killing cancerous cells. Patients are typically kept isolated for 24 hours and should avoid prolonged exposure to children and pregnant women for a week or two after treatment.

Once the individual’s thyroid has been removed, levothyroxine (Synthroid, Levoxyl) is prescribed to replace the body’s natural thyroid hormone. (Patients must temporarily stop thyroid hormone pills prior to radioactive iodine treatment.) The dose of the synthetic hormone may need to be adjusted based on any symptoms that develop. Too much thyroid hormone can cause a rapid heart beat and weight loss. If the levels drop too low, the result can be sluggishness, weight gain, and dry skin.