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Feeling lost and confused.

dani1985
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Hi, 

my husband noticed a lump on my supraclavicular area of my neck a few weeks ago.   i didnt think anything off it until i googled it, :neutral: i know, i know, dr google.  but because of its location i booked an appointment with my GP.   she immediately referred me to have an ulstrasound for reassurance etc.    i was told this was a two week wait referral.    

i waited a week and heard nothing so i rang my gp surgery just to check on the status, they said ring the hospital to check they got the referral.   rang the hospital who said ultrasounds generally arent eligible for the 2 week wait , so it could be months.   feeling anxious about things, and seeing this lump on my neck daily got me scared, i felt something isnt right.  so i booked a private ultrasound.  had the US quickly and he thankfully didnt find any masses or lumps in my supraclavicular area on either side, but what he did find was an englarged left side thyroid with lots of nodes (multinodular goitre) he also found that the goitre (englargement) was going into my thorax and said i would need a mri or ct scan to investigate further.    

i then did goodle his findings and it made so much sense as to why i had a continuous cough for months, breathlessness and constant clearing my throat.  i just thought i was fat and unfit lol 

my gp put in a referral to the endocrine team but also  suggested having my thyroid bloods checked to rule out hypo or hyperthyroidsm as they will ask for that.  she also put on a regular blood check including liver function, kidneyes, sugars, tsh, bone profile, t4 etc.    all have come back normal except my liver function test which i need to repeat. 

 

my head is soooo confused now.  can the thyroid effect the liver test?   can i have an overatctive or underactive thyroid even though my bloods are normal.  im just questioining it all.  why is my thryoid enlarged if bloods are ok? why is my liver test abnormal.     i feel something sinisiter is happening in my body and im so scared.  any advice would be greatful, or even words of wisdom from others who have been through similar please.   

 

ps,  im having a private ct scan next week on my neck and chest.  

 

thanks for listening x

 

dani

  • Hello Dani and thanks for posting,

    It sounds like you need to have a chat with your GP to talk over these blood test results and put them and everything else in context. Try not to worry for now. 

    A goitre ( enlargement/swelling of the thyroid) doesn't necessarily mean the thyroid gland is under or over active, goitres can occur in glands that are functioning as normal. Although some goitres are linked to specific conditions, I don't think doctors can always pinpoint a clear cut cause for them. 

    Thyroid function is measured with blood tests to measure thyroid hormones, as far as I know these are reliable tests.

    I think if the thyroid is functioning normally, it wouldn't have an affect on the liver. The liver function result could be unrelated and has just been picked up incidentally because of having tests. 

    It may help to take a look at some information about goitres produced by the British Thyroid Foundation at this link and by the Society for Endocrinology here .

    I can't be sure but I assume that there wasn't a suspicious looking nodule on the ultrasound, if there is, the next step is usually a needle biopsy.

    I think a lot of people having tests worry that something sinister will come to light, but most of the time it doesn't. Remember other things can happen to the thyroid aside from cancer and thyroid cancer is really rather rare so not likely.  

    Give us a call if you want to talk anything over, the number to call is Freephone 0808 800 4040 and we are around weekdays 9-5. 

    Best wishes,

    Julia

  • Offline in reply to CRUK Nurse Julia

    Hi, 

     

    thank you for your reply.  so it was my bilrubin in my liver function test that came back high. i asked for a copy of my results and my red blood cells were also low in my full blood count, and my mcv and mch are high.    the dr really wants to scan to see whats going on, so thats the next step as planned.    hes more concerned because of my continuous cough to see if the substernal goitre is causing it etc.   time will tell x

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