[Kenzmadie]

I had a CT scan a couple of months ago to follow up on pleural thickening. They saw an enlarged thyroid and so sent me for a sonogram and a thyroid uptake scan. Saw the endo yesterday and my thyroid is three times the size it is supposed to be and has 3 nodules on each side of it. I have to go for a fine needle biopsy next Monday and have to get blood work to test for Hashimoto's today. My sister had nodules and was tested for Hashimoto's but tested negative. I have lupus, raynauds, and sjrogrens, and am wondering if it is likely that I have hashimoto's in addition to this. Even if everything is negative, she's putting me on thyroid medication because my thyroid is so large and it should shrink it a bit (shrink me a bit too...it certainly would help explain the 17 pounds I've gained!) I was just wondering how prevelant Hashimoto's is among the members of this forum. Any feedback would be appreciated. Thanks

 

[blueisis]

Hi I had an enlarged (goitered) thyroid about 7 years ago, before I was dx with sle etc. I developed Hashimotos disease and after lots of tests (the same as you have had) they decided to remove a piece of my thyroid called the isthmus which is a butterfly piece between the 2 lobes. They did promise me that they would remove the whole lot but they were convinced that that isthmus was the problem. It worked for a while - they put be on thyroxine and liothyronine (T3 and T4) (liothyronine is prescribed rarely by my consultant) and then I had a bad case of thyroiditis. Consequently, I ended up again in hospital having the whole lot remove (a 2nd operation I could have really done without) and I now take 100mcg thyroxine and 10mcg liothyronine for my thyroid.

When the histology results came back from the 2nd operation I was told that it was covered in lymphocytes and nodules consistient with autoimmune problem (still undiagnosed with sle then as this was 4 years ago).

I was finally dx with sle and associated problems 3 years ago and have had no problems with the area where my thyroid has been. The scar really healed up well and is hardly visible (I used argon and vitamin e oil over it once it had healed to assist with the scarring).

I cant say whether I had the sle when these thyroid problems were going on as my tests were negative, although they did think I had zero negative lupus at one stage. I believe hashimotos is an autoimmune disease which attacks the thyroid much like the sle attacks whatever it wants to in sle.

Hope this helps.

Hugs

Julia

 

[lazylegs]

Shortly after the birth of my first daughter I developed a goiter. I had developed Grave's. The medications didn't help me. The scan showed the goiter was too close to the spinal column so surgery was out. Instead they shrank it radioactively. Now I take levothyroxine to make up for my own deficiency.

I hope the medication reduces your goiter and the biopsy is negative. Let us know how it goes.

Take care,
Lazylegs

 

[Kenzmadie]

update

Well, no hashimotos and the fine needle biopsy results were negative. This is good. I have follow up on Monday to see if she wants to put me on the medication to shrink it. I will never allow them to do another fine needle biopsy again. It was absolutely awful...one of the times the needle went in, I felt it pop through something in there. Creepy! and very uncomfortable. It was a big joke to the guy who was doing it. "Doesn't hurt me a bit" he says. I wanted to slug him. Doesn't everyone get tired of all the tests and the tests and the tests. And it seems like they can never explain anything. Gee, we don't know why you're sodium was so low. Gee, we don't know why you have pleuril thickening. Gee, we don't know why you stop bleeding every time we try to take your blood. Oh, well, that's the update. Thanks for your posts.

 

[lazylegs]

Did the doctor explain how they are going to shrink it? Thirty years ago when I had mine done I had to drink a radioactive solution. I am curious to see if it has changed much since then.

Glad to hear the biopsy was negative.

Take care,
Lazylegs

 

[Kenzmadie]

Well, she was going to put me on synthroid which she thought would shrink it....but my last TSH (which turns out was a year ago, I thought I had one since then but guess I didn't) was .66 and that is too low for synthroid. I have to get a repeat TSH. She said the options were: do nothing and repeat the scan in 1 year, kill it with radioactive iodine, or take it out. I chose the "nothing" option. I have to go get a new TSH done but won't see her again for a year. Yay!