PCP or Specialist

[3dUSA]

        Should I be going to a specialist for my hypothyroidism and knowing that I have no thyroids because of cancer.

         I see a PCP right now and is very through and checks my levels regularly? 

          He's not bad to look at, either. 😍 A real cutey!

Dianna

[Heloise]

If you feel comfortable I wouldn't add the Endo.  There is no guarantee he would do better but you need to keep certain nutrients at higher levels.  I'm not sure how they monitor for cancer but there are others here who can advise you there.

Here is a list: stopthethyroidmadness.com/l...

[3dUSA in reply to Heloise]

Thank you, Heloise! I am looking on the Web site you gave me. I don't really want to add another dang doctor on my list of TOO MANY ALREADY!

Dianna

[Heloise in reply to 3dUSA]

I'm in the U.S. as well Dianna.  I only see my P.A. and tell her what I think I need.  She's agreeable to prescribe NDT but when I can get T3, I use that as well.  What are you taking?

[3dUSA]

Levothyrox 0.125 mg. Whatty what! NDT???  Explain the 2ND sentence. "She's agreeable to prescribe (NDT) but when I can get (T3),..." T3???

[Heloise in reply to 3dUSA]

Dianna, the others have given good information but if you don't know anything about NDT you have a huge learning curve.   I don't know about other diseases but chronic conditions are something doctors do not want to bother with it appears.  If they can get away with doling out a pill, that is their preference.  As one doctor once said, "we don't make money by talking". 

You can learn so much from the collective wisdom of fellow sufferers.  It's almost encyclopedic and for the most part we all seem to agree. 

The website link I gave you is great.  Search through it.  They have investigated thyroid problems for decades.  Since your thyroid controls so much of your metabolism and your adrenals direct how energy is used, to me it's almost a life or no life situation.  It's dismal that the medical profession doesn't see it that way.

Natural desiccated thyroid hormone was first used in the 1890's.  It is porcine derived and the only treatment for probably fifty years.  It is not the exact ratio of the hormone as in humans but certainly your levothyroxine which is only T4 contains no ratios of anything.  

health.howstuffworks.com/hu...

[3dUSA]

What is Levothyroxine? NDT or T3? I'm confused? 😦 Hah!

[humanbean in reply to 3dUSA]

If you look at the ingredients of your Levothyrox I'm guessing that the main or only active ingredient is levothyroxine sodium. It is an artificial substitute for the thyroxine a healthy thyroid would produce.

There are lots of brand names used for levothyroxine. I can only assume the difference between them is the fillers and binders. Levothyroxine (levo) is the same everywhere as far as I know. Levo is also referred to as T4 by patients because it contains a molecule of Tyrosine and  4 iodine atoms.

--------------------------------------

NDT = Natural Dessicated Thyroid, sometimes called DTE (Dessicated Thyroid Extract). This is the treatment that was used for hypothyroidism before levothyroxine was developed. It was developed in the 1880s or 1890s and was used very successfully for about 70 or 80 years before being (mostly) superseded by levothyroxine. NDT is usually made from pig thyroid nowadays, but originally sheep thyroid was used. Cow thyroid has also been used.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Desic...

Wikipedia mentions

The American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists[7] and the Royal College of Physicians[8]) recommend against the use of thyroid extract for the treatment of hypothyroidism. Concerns include the potential for adverse effects from superphysiological levels of T3 and the absence of long-term safety data from randomized clinical trials.

NDT has been around for 120 years and they still haven't got any long term safety data apparently. *Rolls eyes* The biggest problem with animal thyroid products is that they can't be patented.

-----------------------------------------

Thyroxine (T4) is a pro-hormone. This means that it has little activity of its own, but acts as the raw material for the body to make the active hormone which is T3 (i.e. T4 with one of its iodine atoms removed).

It is too little T3 which makes people feel hypothyroid, and too much T3 makes them hyperthyroid. TSH has no effect on how you feel - it's a pituitary hormone, not a thyroid hormone.

Doctors mostly prescribe T4. But some more enlightened doctors will also prescribe NDT and/or T3 (liothyronine). NDT and T3 work really well for many people. People take all sorts of combinations - T4 alone, T3 alone, NDT alone or combinations of two or three of these (although taking all three would be very rare).

Lots of people on this forum either can't get a diagnosis at all, or don't do well on the standard treatment, so there are lots of us taking non-standard treatment. In many cases we buy from abroad without a prescription because we can't get the thyroid meds that make us feel well any other way.

[shaws Administrator]

This is part of a link I was reading earlier and it follows the comments from the members above. The majority of us on this site don't get well on levo only, Excerpt:

"I want to state emphatically that the woman should not settle merely for having thyroid function tests and antibody levels checked. If her doctor doesn't also know how to perform a clinical evaluation—assessment of her history, symptoms, and physical exam findings—the doctor should refer the woman to another doctor who does not how. 

Usually, an endocrinologist is the wrong choice. In general, these specialists have virtually no training in or knowledge of clinical medicine or experience in doing clinical evaluations. The best choice is an alternative doctor knowledgeable about hypothyroidism and experienced in treating patients with products that contain both T4 and T3 as part of a holistic metabolic regimen. If the woman does consult an endocrinologist, she should make sure the specialist isn’t a dogmatic advocate of T4-replacement therapy; instead, she should see to it that the endocrinologist is enlightened enough to treat hypothyroid patients as alternative thyroid doctors do.

web.archive.org/web/2010103...

The above link is archived as Dr Lowe died a couple of years ago but at the top of the page there is lots of good info although links within don't work now.

[SilverAvocado]

I had cancer 3 years ago and have been seeing an Endo ever since. She knows NOTHING. But at least she is fairly open minded, prescribed T3, and is happy for my to see functional doctors. 

I went to one of her colleagues for a second opinion, and all they could talk about was weaning me off the T3 and on to T4 mono therapy at doses I'd already tried and been very ill on. 

So it could be worse for me, but I don't think Endos are the be all and end all, if you're happy with what you've got, it's probably the best you can get. 

[3dUSA in reply to SilverAvocado]

Do me a favor and look at my latest posts (two days ago) from Heroise, Human Bean, Eljii, and Shaws(administrator).

3DUSA

I also had surgery, though, of both sides of my Thyroids, they were taken out(two separate thyroidectomy). I was then administrated radioactive iodine capsules. 

I am now on .125 mg of levothyrox.  It has been 8 years in Jan. and Feb. 

Please, if you wanna talk, I'm here with ears open.

Please, read the posts.

[SilverAvocado in reply to 3dUSA]

Thanks, Dianna, for me it's been 3 years, and I've tried lots of different things. I'm now self medicating with NDT (dessicated thyroid taken from animals). I've been mainly stuck in the house or in bed those 3 years, I'm getting a little bit of improvement, now. But will probably have to increase my dose at least twice more, so who knows what will happen! 

Good luck with yours. 

[3dUSA in reply to SilverAvocado]

There is always hope out there and a whole abundance of support out there, esp. on this site(from me)!

3dUSADianna

[Heloise]

Are you still with us, Dianna?  I know you got lots of information at once.  Please continue to ask questions as you go along if you wish.

[3dUSA]

😕😞😐😖 There is so much info. I am trying to sort though it in my brain?? 👼Overdrive of the brain. 🚘 No, a tractor is going faster. 🚜

Thanks!