Thyroid cancer is a medical condition where the patient might not experience clear signs in the thyroid gland. Since there is more than one form of this cancer, it is important to recognize the various symptoms that go along with each type. Certain symptoms are common to all types of thyroid cancer including cough, a lump in the throat, throat and neck pain, difficulty in swallowing, and swollen lymph nodes in the neck.
The main types of thyroid cancer include the following varieties:
1. Papillary thyroid cancer
This is a highly common type of thyroid cancer. It is often ignored as the symptoms are not very indicative. Ideally, there would be a lump in the thyroid and that’s what the doctor would ideally look for. You must seek medical attention if you notice symptoms such as a lump in the neck, find difficulty in swallowing, extreme sore throat and harshness in voice, swollen lymph nodes and difficulty in breathing especially while sleeping.
These symptoms would generally show as the nodule grows bigger. You should be alert if the symptoms increase and if you are in the age group of 30-50. This type of thyroid cancer does not indicate any signs of hypo and hyperthyroidism. Since the symptoms don’t usually cause any difficulties in the initial phase, determining the presence of this type of thyroid cancer can be extremely difficult.
2. Medullary thyroid cancer
This is a rare form of thyroid cancer and is responsible for not more than 3% of cases. Again the symptoms in the initial stage are not very clear and indicative; however, there would be an unusual lump in the neck or the throat. As a patient, you can feel or see the lump, yet early diagnosis can be very difficult to confirm. In the later stages, the patient may experience frequent signs of diarrhea. The most common signs of medullary thyroid cancer are neck lumps, neck pain, harshness in voice, coughing, difficulty in swallowing, and shortness of breath. As the condition progresses, there would be advanced symptoms such as increasing bone pain, facial flushing, lethargy, and unusual weight loss.
3. Follicular thyroid cancer
Follicular thyroid cancer is the second most common type of thyroid cancer, with 15% of cases detected. This is very common among older people. Again, this type of thyroid cancer has the usual symptoms such as a lump in the neck, changes in the voice, difficulty in swallowing, and pain in the neck and throat. Also, there could be signs of constant cough, which could be mistaken for a cold.
Hurthle cell cancer also has some usual symptoms like other types of thyroid cancer, and it is generally diagnosed in the initial stage.
Anaplastic thyroid cancers represent only 2% of the overall cases and are indicative of symptoms such as a lump in the neck, difficulty in swallowing, presence of a hard visible mass in the lower front part of the neck, enlarged lymph nodes, cough with or without blood, difficulty in breathing, and loud breathing.
As most of the thyroid cancer symptoms are not very clear in the initial stage, you must keep a close watch on the symptoms and ensure a general checkup of the thyroid gland once in a few months.