Should i have a benign thyroid nodule removed

Read more Your Health posts. To make an appointment with Dr. Sinclair, call Subscribe to our newsletter and receive email updates from Mount Sinai. Please enter a valid first name. Please enter a valid email.

Thank you for successfully signing up to our newsletter! J Am Coll Surg ; Epub May 6, Of these patients, 92 had surgery, had no further follow-up, had follow-up at less than 3 year intervals and had follow-up at 3 or more years after the initial biopsy. The average follow-up in the short follow-up group was 13 months as compared to 57 months in the long follow-up group.

As expected, the long follow-up group patients had more ultrasounds and more repeat thyroid biopsies performed. A total of 26 nodules had a 2nd biopsy with the most common reason being increased growth. Radiofrequency ablation is a minimally invasive treatment for large, benign thyroid nodules. During this simple outpatient procedure, our doctors use an ultrasound-guided needle to transfer an electrical current to the thyroid nodule.

This heats up and shrinks the nodule. Radiofrequency ablation is an alternative when thyroid surgery is not a preferred option and offers faster recovery, fewer complications, and no scarring. Most people can return to normal activities the day after the procedure and do not require thyroid medication. Please speak with your endocrinologist or endocrine surgeon to see if you qualify for this procedure. The thyroid consists of two lobes, which sit on either side of the windpipe, or trachea.

They are joined by a small piece of tissue, called an isthmus. For a thyroid lobectomy, surgeons remove one lobe of the thyroid and the isthmus. A doctor may also use a lobectomy to manage a single toxic nodule that is causing hyperthyroidism. A lobectomy is also used to remove a thyroid nodule that might contain cancer. Removing one lobe instead of two often allows the thyroid to continue producing enough thyroid hormone. If the nodule is confirmed to be cancerous, the rest of the thyroid is usually removed in a second, later procedure.

Genetic testing of a nodule often allows surgeons to avoid performing a lobectomy to confirm a diagnosis of thyroid cancer. If testing shows that cancer is likely, surgeons can perform a thyroidectomy, the removal of the entire thyroid, as the first and only procedure.

In: Goldman-Cecil Medicine. Elsevier; Ferri FF. Thyroid nodule. In: Ferri's Clinical Advisor Diagnostic approach to and treatment of thyroid nodules. Hoang JK, et al. Understanding the risks and harms of management of incidental thyroid nodules: A review.

Goldblum JR, et al. Thyroid gland. In: Rosai and Ackerman's Surgical Pathology. Elselvier; Accessed Nov. Kellerman RD, et al. Thyroid cancer. In: Conn's Current Therapy Perri F, et al. Thyroid cancer management: From a suspicious nodule to targeted therapy. Anti-Cancer Drugs. Rumack CM, et al. The thyroid gland. In: Diagnostic Ultrasound.