Most Common Thyroid Cancer Symptoms
Your thyroid is a butterfly-shaped gland at the base of your throat. It’s involved in some key jobs, such as managing your heart rate, blood pressure, body temperature, and weight.
Your thyroid has two lobes, left and right, connected by a thin piece of tissue. If it’s healthy, each lobe is about the size of a quarter and you won’t see or feel it under your skin.
Thyroid cancer is typically first noticed as a thyroid nodule.
If you have symptoms of thyroid cancer, they may include:
- Trouble swallowing
- Difficulty breathing, which may feel like sucking air through a straw
- Hoarseness or other voice changes
- A constant cough that is not due to a cold
- A lump in the front of the neck (around the Adam’s apple) that might grow quickly
- Swollen — but not painful — glands in the neck
- Pain that starts in the front of the neck and goes up into your ears
Also, if your face is turning red and you have frequent loose bowel movements, these may be signs of something called medullary thyroid cancer.
However, symptoms are not always a sign of thyroid cancer and are often caused by other things. You’ll need to see your doctor to find out what it is.
What does thyroid pain feel like?
“Thyroid cancer usually does not cause pain,” says Athanasios Bikas, MD PhD, of Harvard Medical School. “If nodules start growing, patients might feel more pressure in the neck, or very uncommonly there might be some referred pain to the jaw and ears.”
Symptoms of Thyroid Cancer in Females vs. Males
Thyroid cancer is more common among women and people assigned female at birth (AFAB) than among men and people assigned male at birth (AMAB). But that doesn’t mean they have different symptoms. Thyroid cancer symptoms in females are the same as those in males.
What Else Could It Be?
A lump in your thyroid could be caused by an infection or a goiter, which is an abnormal growth of the thyroid gland. It might not be cancerous at all. Lumps in the thyroid usually aren’t.
But it’s possible to have thyroid cancer without any symptoms at all.
Your doctor will examine your thyroid during routine physical exams. If you have any symptoms between checkups, such as a new nodule on the gland or a rapidly growing one, you should have your thyroid gland checked. Your doctor will do several tests to diagnose the source of the problem and decide on the best treatment.
When to See a Doctor About Thyroid Cancer Symptoms
If you notice symptoms of thyroid cancer, call your doctor right away. “People should go to the doctor if they find a lump (especially one that is growing), if they have any compressive symptoms (trouble breathing, trouble swallowing), or if they get a hoarse voice (that is not because of an upper respiratory infection),” explains Bikas. More generalized symptoms, such as unexplained weight loss, fatigue, pain at the base of the neck, nausea, or vomiting, may also be worth a trip to the doctor.
Takeaways
In the early stages, thyroid cancer might not cause any symptoms at all. As it gets bigger, you might notice symptoms such as a lump in the front of your neck, difficulty breathing, and changes in your voice. If you notice these symptoms, call your doctor, especially if you or a family member has had thyroid cancer in the past.
Thyroid Cancer Symptoms FAQs
What are the first symptoms of thyroid cancer?
Early on, thyroid cancer might not cause any symptoms. As the cancer advances, you might notice a lump in your neck or changes in your voice.
Can thyroid cancer symptoms be asymptomatic?
In the beginning, thyroid cancer usually won’t cause any noticeable symptoms.
Is thyroid cancer very curable?
Thyroid cancer has a high cure rate.
How long can a person live with thyroid cancer?
People with the most common type of thyroid cancer are 80%-100% as likely to survive five years as those without cancer.
What is the first stage of thyroid cancer?
Thyroid cancer has four stages. The first stage (I) is the least severe.
