Hi everyone
It makes me nervous even posting to this site but I'm hoping that if someone on here has been through something similar then they may be able to provide me with some advice.
In October 2019 my hairdresser told me she had found a lump behind my ear and wanted me to get it checked out. I also had noticed a lump on the front of my neck that looked like an Adam's apple and when I brought it to my husbands attention he said he had never noticed it before but looked to be part of my neck... I could get my fingers around it and so I was concerned.
I saw my GP who put me on a 2ww. I was told I may need a ultrasound guided FNA. Bloods came back fine. I ended up just having an ultrasound as they said my cyst was spongelike in appearance and an US was now considered a method of diagnosis for thyroid nodules. My lump behind my ear was deemed to be a lymph node possibly swollen at the time from illness but it had since gone down. I know these are medically trained people but honestly I felt like I walked away from that appointment not in the slightest bit relieved. I wanted a biopsy not only to rule out cancer but also because I wanted to know why I had this 1.7cm visible lump on the front of my neck. At this point I couldn't stop looking at it or feeling it. The doctor signed me off, with no follow up at all unless there was a significant change in the lump (this also worried me greatly!)
In May 2020, I was convinced it had gotten bigger. I called my GP who due to COVID and me having a scan only 6/7 months prior refused to see me.
In October 2020 my husband took a family photo of me and my children whereby my lump was clearly visible and he was worried. He asked me to book an appointment with our GP. I went private. Had an US again, no significant changes since October 2019. The doctor said I would be followed up in 6 months and that my cyst was benign. I asked him to attempt to drain my cyst as it was causing me distress cosmetically. He agreed. I had my cyst drained in February. As a result of the draining of the cyst a biopsy was taken. The cyst unfortunately filled back up within 24 hours.
Last week (we are now in March!) the consultant called me for a telephone consultation which I thought was odd since he had agreed to see me in 6 months to rescan. He told me there were abnormal cells within my biopsy and he couldn't say with certainty what they were however since the lump hadn't grown in size he wasn't overly worried; but also couldn't ignore the fact they were there. He said there were several reasons I could have abnormal cells, including cancer but also non sinister reasons such as them potentially being damaged during the fna process or when the cells were put between the glass plates (inflammation markers were also up). He offered to remove my thyroid if this news made me anxious or to rescan in 6 months. I didn't particularly want either of these options just yet and so I asked him to rebiopsy. He agreed.
im waiting for my appointment and now full of anxiety and worry. It's likely they'll come back abnormal again if they were damaged during the removal process and if they do what do I do?! What is life like on thyroid meds? Am I being foolish to consider taking my thyroid out or is it sensible? I feel as though my consultant has given me full responsibility on making my decision. I am only 33 years old with two young children age 4 & 6. I've worried about my thyroid continuously for almost two years.
im also considering seeing a naturopath to help me take control of whatever this situation is if anyone has any advice or can point me in the right direction for that ?
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
