Thyroid Cancer Treatment

For people with thyroid cancer, the goal is to remove the cancer by performing surgery and stop it from growing and returning.

At Winship, a team of renowned thyroid experts will provide you with the best thyroid cancer treatment options in the region. Our multidisciplinary team includes endocrinologists, head and neck surgeons, endocrine surgeons, nuclear medicine physicians, medical and radiation oncologists, radiologists, pathologists, pharmacists and advanced practice providers.

If the cancer is at an advanced stage, or it has returned, a more aggressive treatment plan is needed. In uncommon scenarios when the type of thyroid cancer cannot be treated, a palliative approach is taken, with the goal of relieving as much pain as possible to improve quality of life.

Each patient’s thyroid cancer will be reviewed by Winship’s Multidisciplinary Thyroid Tumor Conference. This collaborative team provides each patient with a thorough, multidisciplinary review process that takes every factor into account — including the size and location of the tumor, the type of thyroid cancer, whether the cancer has spread and the patient’s overall health — to provide the best treatment plan. This plan will then be recommended to the patient and next steps will be taken in the treatment journey.

How treatable is thyroid cancer? It depends on the type and stage. One or more of the following types of treatment may be used:

Surgery

Surgery is the main thyroid cancer treatment for thyroid nodules and tumors, except for some anaplastic thyroid cancers. Doctors may remove part of or the entire thyroid. Nearby lymph nodes and affected tissue may also be removed if the cancer has spread to those areas. Several surgical techniques can be used, depending on the stage:

• Thyroidectomy. The most common type of surgery for thyroid cancers. A thyroidectomy removes the thyroid gland. A small incision will be made along the neck, leaving behind a small scar that usually fades with time. If nearly all of the gland is removed, it is known as a near-total thyroidectomy. If the entire thyroid gland is removed, it is called a total thyroidectomy.
• Lobectomy. This type of surgery removes the lobe, or portion of the thyroid gland, that contains the cancer. This is typically used for differentiated thyroid cancers in which the thyroid nodules are small and there is no sign of spread. With a lobectomy, part of the thyroid gland remains, which means most patients who receive this type of surgery may not need thyroid hormone therapy afterward.
• Lymph node removal. If the cancer has spread to the surrounding lymph nodes, they will be taken out in addition to the affected thyroid. This can be done at the same time during one surgery.

Radioiodine Therapy

The thyroid gland absorbs nearly all the iodine in the body. For this reason, radioiodine treatment for certain well differentiated thyroid cancer (larger tumors and/or involvement of lymph nodes and /or metastatic disease) is offered. Administered via pill form, radioiodine therapy targets and destroys all the cancerous cells located in the thyroid gland as well as other areas of the body that has thyroid cancer cells such as the surrounding lymph nodes and neck, or other distant sites. It is often used as a follow-up to surgery and is only considered for treatment of papillary thyroid cancer and follicular thyroid cancer, not for medullary thyroid cancer. Radioiodine scans can also be used to monitor any recurrence of thyroid cancer.

Thyroid Hormone Therapy

In the case of a near-total or a total thyroidectomy, a patient will need to take daily thyroid hormone pills to account for their missing thyroid gland.

Radiation Therapy

High energy X-rays or other types of radiation can be used to kill cancer cells. This form of treatment can be used in more advanced thyroid cancer.

Targeted Therapy

Targeted therapies use specific drugs that target cancer cells. With thyroid cancer, the targeted therapies typically used are called kinase inhibitors. Some examples include multikinase inhibitors, RET inhibitors and TRK inhibitors. Targeted therapies tend to have fewer side effects than chemotherapy. Winship patients have access to clinical studies using FDA-approved targeted therapies in various types of thyroid cancer including papillary, follicular and medullary subtypes of thyroid cancer.

Chemotherapy

Chemotherapy drugs are rarely used for more common types of thyroid cancer. Chemotherapy is most often used for more advanced forms like poorly differentiated oranaplastic thyroid cancer.

Close Surveillance

Winship physicians employ a multidisciplinary approach to carefully determine the level of risk posed by your cancer after surgery. They will closely monitor your condition using a combination of physical exams, blood tests and imaging.

Besides standard therapies, participating in clinical trials may be an option. Clinical trials provide patients access to new medications that are being developed for thyroid cancer treatment. Winship is Georgia’s only NCI-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center, which offers patients the latest clinical trials being done to treat thyroid cancer today.

At Winship, each patient is carefully considered to see whether they qualify for a clinical trial using innovative treatment methods.

Besides advanced care and treatment methods, Winship also offers a supportive oncology team of specialized doctors and nurses who can help with the physical, psychological and emotional aspects of living with cancer, including symptom management and counseling. We know that a cancer diagnosis is scary and stressful. That’s why Winship’s counselors, nurse navigators, dietitians and social service professionals are with you every step of the way.