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An autonomous thyroid nodule or "hot nodule" is one that has thyroid function independent of the homeostatic control of the HPT axis (hypothalamic–pituitary–thyroid axis). According to a 1993 article, such nodules need to be treated only if they become toxic; surgical excision (thyroidectomy), radioiodine therapy, or both may be used. [32]
Thyroid disease is a medical condition that affects the function of the thyroid gland.The thyroid gland is located at the front of the neck and produces thyroid hormones [1] that travel through the blood to help regulate many other organs, meaning that it is an endocrine organ.
Thyroid cancers are mainly papillary, follicular, medullary or anaplastic thyroid cancer. [2] Most patients are 25 to 65 years of age when first diagnosed; women are more affected than men. [2] [3] Nearly 80 percent of thyroid cancer is papillary and about 15 percent is follicular; both types grow slowly and can be cured if caught early.
Most people with thyroid cancer do not have symptoms at the time of diagnosis and thyroid nodules and thyroid cancer is usually found incidentally on imaging of the neck. [10] [14] Up to 65% of adults have small nodules in their thyroids, but typically under 10% of these nodules are found to be cancerous. [15]
A 26-year-old male patient with elevated serum parathyroid hormones and calcium secondary to intra-thyroid parathyroid adenoma. a, b Enhanced axial and coronal CT scan of the neck demonstrate a well-defined hypodense right thyroid nodule (white arrows). c Bone window coronal CT scan shows lytic expansile lesions at the right mandible and left ...
The thyroid ultrasound is also very effective to discover microcarcinomas, which refer to very small carcinomas (<1 cm). Papillary thyroid carcinomas are also discovered when a hard nodule is found in multinodular goiter, when enlarged cervical lymph nodes are detected, or when there are unidentified metastatic lesions elsewhere in the body. [5]
Medullary thyroid carcinoma may also produce a thyroid nodule and enlarged cervical lymph nodes. [4] Sites of spread of medullary thyroid carcinoma include local lymph nodes in the neck, lymph nodes in the central portion of the chest (mediastinum), liver, lung, and bone. Spread to other sites such as skin or brain occurs but is uncommon.
Life expectancy may be confused with the average age an adult could expect to live, creating the misunderstanding that an adult's lifespan would be unlikely to exceed their life expectancy at birth. This is not the case, as life expectancy is an average of the lifespans of all individuals, including those who die before adulthood.