Лечение рака щитовидной железы в Израиле

Treatment of thyroid cancer using innovative methods of therapy has made it possible to achieve high cure rates for patients. Doctors at the leading Israeli private clinic, Herzliya Medical Center, widely use the latest techniques in the treatment of thyroid cancer.

Thyroid cancer develops in the glandular cells of the thyroid gland, which is located on the front surface of the neck, has the shape of a butterfly. The thyroid gland produces hormones that can regulate the heart rate, blood pressure, affect thermoregulation. Thyroid cancer is not a common pathology among oncological diseases, but recently the percentage of this type of cancer among the population has been growing.

Thyroid Cancer Symptoms

Thyroid cancer in the initial stages of development, usually does not have any manifestations, but with the progression of the tumor process, the following oncological symptoms are characteristic :

• Thyroid enlargement;
• Changes in voice, hoarseness;
• Trouble swallowing;
• Pain in the cervical spine;
• Enlarged regional lymph nodes in the neck.

Diagnostic tests will help confirm or deny the diagnosis of thyroid cancer.

Diagnostics

Diagnosis of thyroid cancer can include various types of tests.

First of all, a specialist doctor will take a medical history and physical examination of the patient, will palpate in the thyroid gland and lymph nodes of the neck.

He will prescribe a blood test to measure the level of thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH).

An objective confirmation of the initial examination data in the diagnosis of thyroid cancer is the results of ultrasound, indicating the presence of an oncological node and an increase in lymph nodes.

A biopsy of thyroid tissue after examination under a microscope can also confirm the presence of this disease.

Possible treatment options directly depend on the type and stage of development of the oncological process, the general state of health and the personal preferences of the patient.

Types of Thyroid Cancer Treatment in Israel

Thyroidectomy — removal of the thyroid gland

The main treatment for thyroid cancer in Israel is surgical: thyroidectomy (extirpation), radical resection or removal of most of the thyroid gland. Most often, during surgery, small areas of the thyroid tissue are left around the parathyroid glands in order to avoid damage to the parathyroid area. During surgery, cervical lymph nodes are resected to check for the presence of pathologically altered cells.

Hormone therapy. Recovery after thyroid removal

Recovery after removal of the thyroid gland usually includes hormone replacement therapy. The consequences of thyroidectomy are such that patients throughout the rest of their lives take hormone-containing drugs (thyroid hormone) to normalize hormonal metabolism. A thyroxin-containing medicine delivers the missing hormone to the body and inhibits the production of TSH (thyroid-stimulating hormone). Elevated TSH levels may contribute to the multiplication of the remaining carcinogenic cells. Specialists-endocrinologists, on the basis of postoperative testing, select doses of the drug individually for each patient.

Radioactive iodine

Treatment with radioactive iodine is often used after thyroidectomy to destroy the remaining affected areas.
Radio iodine therapy has been used to treat recurrence of the disease, and is also used in the presence of metastases. Radioactive iodine is prescribed in the form of capsules. It is absorbed by the cells of the thyroid gland, as well as by a malignant tumor that has arisen in this organ, without harming other organs.
The main part of the radioactive iodine is excreted in the urine during the first week after the procedure. During this period, the patient emits radiation, so he is forbidden to contact with other people.

Radiation therapy

Remote radiation therapy ensures the destruction of a cancerous tumor by ionizing radiation, thanks to high-energy rays precisely aimed at pathological formation. External radiotherapy, as a rule, is used to treat relapses of thyroid cancer, with metastases to other organs.

Chemotherapy

Chemotherapy uses chemicals that destroy cancer cells. Chemotherapeutic drugs are usually administered intravenously, with a blood stream distributed throughout the body, killing rapidly growing cells, including cancer cells.
Chemotherapy is usually not used in the treatment of thyroid cancer, but is prescribed to patients who are not helped by other standard methods of treatment.
Chemotherapy is commonly used in the treatment of medullary and anaplastic thyroid cancer, and it is also used to treat cancer in Israel that is not treatable by standard methods.