Thyroid Nodule: Suppression not working (thyroid meds, depressed, swelling, biopsy)
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I have had a thyroid nodule for over 9 years and my first endocrinologist put me on Synthoid to shrink the nodule. At first, the nodule appeared to shrink, but after a few years, the nodule actually got bigger and I switched doctors. The second doctor was also concerned about the increase in size, but mentioned that the idea of shrinking/suppressing the nodule via medication was an old method that doesn't always work. He brought up the idea of weaning me off of my medication, but I was hesitant to do it because I didn't want to have the huge changes in mood and metabolism that would come with it.
Now, I'm in a different city, so I am once again seeing a different doctor. He and his supervisor both advised me to stop taking the medications--cold turkey--because the medications aren't working (I guess if they were working, my nodule wouldn't be getting bigger). I'm still really nervous about going off the medications, though. The doctors told me I would have hypothyroidism for about 2 weeks, but things would level off after that. They also said that my nodule would also continue to get larger. I'm mostly nervous about my mood and metabolism because I have been both overweight and depressed (not necessarily at the same time) and I don't want to go through either of those things again. I'm also worried about my nodule continuing to get larger; it seems like the only eventual solution is to get it surgically removed.
Has anyone out there had a similar experience or some knowledge about going off of Synthroid or other thyroid meds after such a long period of time? I'm in my mid 20s now, so I guess if my metabolism does dip down significantly, I can at least increase my activity level. Any advice or insight would be appreciated.
Having had 6 nodules (3 on each side) and a Thyroidecomy would think that a biopsy should be performed to check for cancer. An ultra sound verified my swelling in the throat when swallowing...that was over 6 yrs ago.
Simple procedure with a needle that you do not see or feel would be the answer. If okay then medication would be the solution and nothing to worry about.
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