Treatment plans often use two or more of the above options, but surgery is the main treatment for all thyroid cancers.1 Surgeons perform a thyroidectomy - the removal of all or part of the thyroid, as well as the cancer. Since most thyroid cancers are often located in the left and right sides of the thyroid, most surgeons remove most of the thyroid gland.2
This operation is called a subtotal or near-total thyroidectomy. For cancers smaller than 1 cm. (½ inch) that show no signs of spreading, surgeons often perform a lobectomy – removal of only the affected side of the thyroid. When cancer has spread outside of the thyroid, surgery is always used to remove as much cancer as possible. Also, because it may spread to nearby lymph nodes, they may also need to be removed. The two traditional surgical options for thyroid cancer patients are either open or endoscopic surgery.
Open surgery is considered effective but requires surgeons to make a 6-8 cm (2-3 inch) incision in the neck which leaves patients with a long and visible scar.3,4 Also, their view into deeper structures of the neck containing delicate nerves is limited.5
Endoscopic or laparoscopic thyroidectomy is minimally invasive and also considered effective for selected patients, but it can also leave visible scaring; the incision is usually about 2.5 cms (1 inch).3,4
One of the complications of these procedures is voice change. Patients are advised to select a surgeon who protects the voice by using an electronic nerve monitoring device during surgery.6 Also, following surgery most patients become hypothyroid, which requires treatment with a hormone supplement.7