Thyroid is a gland present in the human body in front of the neck. The uncontrolled division of cells in this gland causes thyroid cancer. This gland produces some hormones and it helps the body to regulate its functions like temperature, blood pressure and metabolism. So if there is any abnormality of these cells then it will present as many systemic symptoms like fever, indigestion etc. The three main types of thyroid cancer are medullary, differentiated and anaplastic. Some of the very small tumors are sometimes not treated and just observed closely in order to take the decision of starting the treatment. The use of multiple treatments instead of only one treatment at a time is beneficial and more advanced. Like other diseases, if it is diagnosed at early stages it is easy to completely eradicate the cancer but often difficult when disease is in a more advanced stage. Sometimes after complete recovery, the cancer again develops in the same site or any different site of the body that can be unrelated to the previous cancer site before treatment. So, there is a need to often go for screening after treatments too. Thyroid cancer is more common in women than in men. In India, the rate of incidence in women and men are 3.9 and 1.3 respectively.
Types of Thyroid Cancer Treatment India
Some of the treatments used for thyroid cancer are as follows:
- Chemotherapy
- Radioactive iodine therapy
- External beam radiation therapy
- Target drug therapy
- Surgery
Chemotherapy
Chemotherapy is a type of systemic therapy in which the medicine goes throughout the body through the blood and kill cancer cells. Some of the drugs used to treat the thyroid cancer are:
- Doxorubicin
- Streptozocin
- Fluorouracil
- Paclitaxel
Radioactive Iodine Therapy
More than half of the iodine in the body is absorbed by the thyroid gland. Because of this, thyroid cancer can be treated with radioactive iodine (RAI, I-131). The RAI mostly accumulates in thyroid cells, where the radiation kill the thyroid gland and any other thyroid cancer cells which take the iodine without causing any effect on the rest of the body.
External Beam Radiation Therapy
In this treatment, high-energy x-rays are used to kill or limit the growth of cancer cells. From a machine outside the body the beam of rays is delivered that is targets at the tumor. Cancer cells that cannot absorb iodine and have spread outside of the thyroid are usually treated with external beam radiation therapy.
Targeted Drug Therapy
In this treatment the growth is limited by preventing the cancer cells to create blood vessels for nutrition. They also target and kill the proteins that helps the cancer cells to grow. Some of the drugs are:
- Cabozantinib
- Larotrectinib
- Pralsetinib
Surgery
Lobectomy: A lobectomy is a procedure in which the lobe that has cancer is removed, usually together with the small part of the gland that is present between the two lobes of the gland.
Thyroidectomy: In this procedure the thyroid gland is surgically removed. It is The most common treatment for thyroid cancer.
Lymph node removal: when cancer spreads to the lymph nodes which are present in surroundings, the lymph nodes and the tumor are removed surgically.
Here are Some Diagnosis of thyroid cancer:
Ultrasound
The use of sound waves to create the body image is used in this test. The image gives the idea of any abnormality or mass present. This also gives the idea of the texture and consistency of mass.
Radioiodine Scan
In this test, the radioactive material is usually given to the patient either by mouth or by injection. Then the absorption of this radioiodine is later examined by the machine outside which gives the idea of the tumor present in the neck.
CT Scan
In this procedure, a machine scans the neck region and gives the image of tumor or mass present. It also gives the idea of spreading the tumor to surrounding tissues alongside the location and size of tumor.
MRI (magnetic resonance imagining)
The magnetic waves are used in this procedure to form the image of the tumor present, its location and the extent to which the tumor has spread.
Biopsy
The most accurate and confirmed diagnosis of thyroid cancer is possible due to this procedure. In this, the tissue cells are removed by needle during incision and then examined by the technicians in the laboratory. The presence of tumor cells in the sample confirms the diagnosis.
Cost of Thyroid Cancer Treatment in India
The average cost of thyroid cancer treatment in India ranges from 1879 USD to 3353.13 USD. The treatment costs may vary according to the hospital facilities, patient’s conditions and stage of cancer. A little amount may vary from city to city.
- Chemotherapy : 537.08 USD - 716.11 USD
- Radiation therapy : 362.89 USD - 24192.1 USD
- Radioiodine therapy : 60.48 USD - 84.68 USD
- Surgery : 1088.68 USD - 5624.84 USD
- Others : 1184.21 USD - 1813.13 USD
Different procedures’ cost for thyroid cancer treatment in India:
Symptoms and Risk factors
Some of the symptoms associated to thyroid cancer are as follows:
- A palpable mass in the neck
- Difficulty in breathing
- Difficulty having meal
- Coughing with no obvious reason
- Pain in neck that radiates to the face
- Change of voice
- Swelling in neck region due to growing tumor
- Fatigue
- Weight loss
- Fever
- Anorexia
- Irritation
- Constipation
- Nausea
- A feeling that the collars of shirts are becoming tight.
Risk Factors Associated with Thyroid Cancer
Gender and Age
Thyroid cancers are often present three times more in women than in men. The women of age 40-50 are more susceptible and in males it is diagnosed in late 60-70 years of their life.
Family History
There is a positive correlation between family history and development of thyroid cancer. The patients with diagnosed thyroid cancer are more likely to pass the disease to their children, brother and sister.
Radiation Exposure
The exposure to the strong rays either for a treatment or any occupational source may be the reason to develop thyroid cancer. People who have exposure to strong radiation in the workplace are more susceptible to developing thyroid cancer.
Obesity
The people with high BMI are more prone to the disease than people with normal BMI. So the people who are overweight are at major risk. As the BMI increases, the risk also increases accordingly.
Iodine in Diet
A normal diet with iodine intake is more important because the people who take either a very low iodine or a very high iodine in their diet are more likely to develop thyroid cancer in the course of their life.
Genetic Factors
The people with specific gene mutations are more likely to develop thyroid cancer. For example, the presence of MEN 2a or MEN 2B are the genetic defects that cause thyroid cancer.
04/29/2024
