Thyroid Ablation

Thyroid ablation means removal of the thyroid. Ablation is the medical term for removal.

Some patients receive both surgical and chemical ablation. Most of the time, these are patients with cancer of the thyroid gland. The follow-up with chemical ablation after the surgical removal of the thyroid helps destroy any cancerous cells that spread to other parts of the body.

Surgical Thyroid Ablation

Surgical thyroid ablation occurs under general anesthesia. Once the patient is under, the surgeon removes the thyroid. Some doctors call the procedure a thyroidectomy. It's an uncomplicated procedure, but like any surgery still has risks. While many doctors may release the patient the same day as the surgery, there are extensive follow up procedures. The effects of surgery, no matter how minor the surgery, stresses the body, particularly those that are already in compromised condition. There is also a shopping list of medication to take post surgery and the doctor needs to check on the effects of each.

Chemical or Radioactive Ablation

For this procedure, the patient simply drinks a cocktail that contains radioactive iodine or takes a radioactive iodine pill. Since the thyroid tissue is the only tissue in the body that absorbs the iodine, it's the only tissue affected. This makes it ideal to treat cases of thyroid cancer where the cells may have strayed to other parts of the body. The patient may or may not be in the hospital after the procedure. Sometimes they go home but must take several precautions to avoid exposing other people to the radiation.

The precautions taken at home require the patient stay clear of others, including sharing a bed. After they use the bathroom, they must flush the toilet several times to make certain they evacuate all the radiation. Increasing the fluid intake is important as well as sucking on candy to increase saliva intake. In addition, after this form of ablation, there are additional medications and therapies to follow.

Doctors prescribe the form of ablation according to the patient's health history. If the patient has cancer and it has spread beyond the thyroid gland, the doctor may prescribe both surgical removal and chemical ablation. The surgery removes the main source of cancer and the radioactive iodine attacks the cells that spread through the body.

Life after Ablation

While recover from ablation is normally quite rapid, there are still dangers of infection involved until the surgical area heals or the radiation leaves the body. Following a thyroid ablation, there is no thyroid hormone in the system to maintain a functioning body. Doctors prescribe thyroid hormone pills for this. While most of the time, all the cancer cells are destroyed with ablation, there is always a possibility of one escaping and multiplying. To insure this doesn't occur, continued visits to the doctor for testing are important.

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