Thyroid cancer

[shams786]

Hi, I'm new here and need some help in understanding what the symptoms and stages are for anyone who stops taking thyroxine tablets altogether.

[Clutter]

Welcome to the forum, Shams786.

Can you elaborate? Have you had a total or partial thyroidectomy? What type of cancer did you have and has your oncologist recommended TSH be suppressed?

[Angel_of_the_North]

Why are you thinking of stopping thyroxine? The final symptom might be death in a myxoedemic coma or, if you are unlucky, just total fatigue and disability. But it's impossible to say. The body needs thyroid hormone to stay alive and for all metabolic processes.

[ThyroidThora]

Hi Shams786,

If you are being treated for thyroid cancer it is highly likely that you will need to take levothyroxine for the rest of your life. Levothyroxine is used to suppress thyroid stimulating hormone (tsh) production as elevated tsh causes the cancer to return and grow. Sometimes when someone has had a partial thyroidectomy (removal of one lobe) to treat thyroid cancer the remaining lobe does the work of two lobes by taking up the slack and producing enough hormones so that levothyroxine is not needed. However, this isn't always the case as I can vouch for this when my right thyroid lobe was removed February 2013 to remove my thyroid cancer. I became seriously hypothyroid and my TSH shot up within a couple of weeks of surgery and I needed levothyroxine.

Please don't hesitate to PM me if you need anymore help.

Good luck.

TT xx