Thyroid cancer

 Each year are diagnosed in Spain approximately 1,700 new cases of thyroid cancer, representing 1% of all tumors. Between 5 and 10% of the nodules on the thyroid gland are diagnosed with cancer, while the remaining 90-95% are benign. The most common are papillary carcinomas (80-85% of thyroid cancer diagnosis) and follicular (5-10%), to which must be added the medulary anaplastic carcinoma and thyroid lymphoma.







 
Causes of thyroid cancer
The causes of thyroid cancer are very different:
A diet low in iodine.
Family history of goiter (enlarged thyroid gland).
The radiation to the head and neck during childhood.
Sex: more common in women than in men (by a ratio of 2 to 1).
Age. Being over 70 or under 20.
Genetic heritage.

Thyroid cancer symptoms
This type of tumor usually does not cause symptoms until it is very advanced. In addition, these symptoms may be due to other diseases, so it will be necessary to make a differential diagnosis:
Appearance of a lump in the neck.
Difficulty breathing and swallowing.
Hoarseness.

Thyroid Cancer Treatment
The treatment of thyroid cancer depends on the type and degree of development, by applying one or more of the following options:
Surgery: removal of part or all of the thyroid gland and neck lymph nodes are affected.
Radiation therapy for tumors of follicular and papillary radiotherapy is performed with radioactive iodine, which is administered orally and requires the total isolation of the patient for a few days.

Chemotherapy plus approved for the treatment of this cancer, cytostatics currently available for a specific drug (tyrosine kinase inhibitor) that works by slowing tumor growth.
Thyroid hormone therapy: is twofold. On the one hand replace the lost function of the thyroid gland, thyroid hormone administered. Furthermore, treatment with drugs that prevent the body produce thyroid stimulating hormone or thyrotropin (TSH) is essentially used to prevent thyroid cancer is reactivated.

Family thyroid cancer
A small proportion of medullary thyroid cancers Thyroid Carcinoma family and familiar are hereditary papillary carcinoma and are defined by transmission from parents to children of a specific genetic alteration (RET and MET, respectively). Being a carrier of the RET gene determines almost certainly (98-100%) familiar medullary thyroid carcinoma, a type of tumor that metastasizes easily and, in fact, is often diagnosed late, when already appeared develop metastases. Furthermore, if the mutation which carries the MET, then the risk of papillary carcinoma family run.

When a patient with thyroid cancer have one of two genetic mutations, consideration should all family members to identify those at risk of developing it and subject them to a narrow track to take the necessary preventive measures to prevent develop the tumor. If the mutation is at very high risk, it proceeds to the removal of the thyroid gland (thyroidectomy) within five years.

When the identified mutations are at high or moderate risk it has to perform before age ten, and before twenty if they are moderate to low risk. This surgery creates patient hypothyroidism, so, although it can lead a perfectly normal life, must undergo replacement therapy for the rest of his life. Each year are diagnosed in Spain approximately 1,700 new cases of thyroid cancer, representing 1% of all tumors. Between 5 and 10% of the nodules on the thyroid gland are diagnosed with cancer, while the remaining 90-95% are benign. The most common are papillary carcinomas (80-85% of thyroid cancer diagnosis) and follicular (5-10%), to which must be added the medulary anaplastic carcinoma and thyroid lymphoma.