So I’m scheduled do have a pretty extensive bilateral neck dissection and full TT next week. I had my pre op appointment with my surgeon today and she told me there wouldn’t be any drains. I was kinda shocked to hear this and was wondering if anyone else has had this surgery without drains and what their experience was?
So last month I had my TT with neck dissection on left side since the left side had bigger and worse affected lymph nodes.Today at 10am I had my right side done.I wanna say I got out 2/3 hours ago but I did'nt have my phone then so idk.I was definitely more conscious and aware this time when I woke up but that's probably because this was a 4-5 hour surgery and not a 16 hour like last time😅.As of right now i'm feeling pretty good.No pain and just a little bit tired.I got a drain in again which was expected but still not fun and is very annoying😂.If i'm still feeling alright I can leave tomorrow so that's very exciting🥳Anyways that's my update.Lemme know if you guys have any questions or want any pictures😊(Though my incision is currently covered up so pics of the drain or pics after I guess😂)
Anyone in here go through this? Just had an appointment with my ENT today to review my ultrasound and discuss surgery. He’s going to try and get me in next week before my next semester of nursing school begins, very nice of him. I’ll be having a TT alone with this bilateral neck dissection- PTC was detected and my cervical lymph’s on both the left and right have to come out. My biggest being 6cm (wow) on my right side. I feel very ready to get this stuff out of me. I know I’ll need RAI 4-6 weeks post op also. This group has been super helpful with RAI experiences and expectancies. Big love to all of you who have been through this and all of you dealing with this card right now!
My surgery was originally supposed to be 12 hours tops but due to complications it lasted for 16 hours!I had a TT with neck dissection on my left side to remove some lymph nodes.I had a total of 60 lymph nodes removed!I went in at 7am and the surgery ended at 11pm.I had 2 drains but got 1 removed today.My recovery so far has been pretty great.No pain besides a sore throat and just kinda tired.So that's me 2 days post-op(would've posted earlier but i've been exhausted😅).If anyone has any questions or anything i'm happy to answer them!😁
TTs and TTs w neck dissection, when did you go back to work after surgery?
Hi, my husband had a TT and bilateral neck dissection 2 weeks ago. He feels pretty good and has been eating normal and going on long walks starting 4 days after surgery. His neck is still a little stiff, which is to be expected. His main complaint is that he feels like there is a collar around his neck. It’s just an overall uncomfortable feeling and it hasn’t gotten any better in the past week. I’m wondering if this is normal and will eventually go away or if this is something he’ll have to live with based on the fact that they cut him from ear to ear 😔
Has anyone on here had one, and what was your experience? I guess I have quite a few nodes on both sides that need to be removed so I need a bilateral dissection. I know that morbidity and risk goes up with this. My surgeon told me all the scary possibilities and it freaked me out but I don’t really have a choice. All the risk factors were small, but still there. She told me that she had just done a patient like me with “a lot of disease” in their neck and she is doing well.
Hey all! I'm hoping there are others here who are years out from lateral neck dissection. I'm at the 5 year mark and starting to regain a little sensation in my left neck and ear. Has anybody had it come back completely? Or at least enough that you can feel your own touch without getting zapped? lol
I saw an endo for the first time since my surgery. (I moved after radio active iodine treatment and just got in with a new one) She was a diabetic endo and said that since I’ve been losing weight and dropped my A1C by two-three points the last two updates, she’s sending me to just a thyroid cancer specialist because my diabetes seems like it’s going to get under control with continued weightloss.
I see the cancer specialist next month. She wants me to see her because she said with how many lymph nodes (I can’t remember but it was a ton ) they had to remove plus my nodules and some neck muscle that I’m higher risk. Hopefully that’s just major precaution and that I’ll be just fine.
My blood work all came out fine and I’m doing well with 200 of the levo.
My scar is severely keloided but I guess I could have that injected with something eventually. Click the link for a just after surgery and current picture. I don’t think I linked it right but I think you can still see it.
[Scar before and Current] (https://www.canva.com/design/DAEvjBcqWZ8/share/preview?token=r1BWVdSnldTorAK_UhBbTA&role=EDITOR&utm_content=DAEvjBcqWZ8&utm_campaign=designshare&utm_medium=link&utm_source=sharebutton)
My right shoulder and parts of my back over there are still numb. It’s very weird. The worst is getting an itch there and getting no relief when scratching.
The hardest part for me has been the mental. When you tell people you’ve got thyroid cancer, you tell them (or they tell you) it’s the “good cancer” or that the survival rate makes it so that it’s very easy. I was grateful obviously to not have something aggressive, but that relief from people that it wasn’t aggressive turned into acting like I wasn’t going through anything, like dropping me at a drs appointment or procedure for this was basically like a normal check up. It was like now wait a minute..I’m not dying but I’m still terrified. I’m still going through weird things. They practically took my head off during surgery (slight exaggeration but with my incision it was all the way across like Frankenstein monster ) and parts of my body are probably forever numb and I swallowed a radioactive pill. Like it wasn’t NOTHING
But despite that I’m doing well
I had a total thyroidectomy done on Sept 22/21. I was having my thyroid removed due to a goiter and Hashimoto’s thyroiditis. I was told this would be a same day surgery. When I woke up in recovery, I was told that I was waiting to be transferred to a room. The nurse said that I had developed a hematoma and that I needed to be monitored and that was the reason I was staying in hospital. The next morning a few doctors came to see me and said that I had a neck dissection done as well as the total thyroidectomy. What does this mean?
Hello! Im on day 4 after a total thyroidectomy and neck dissection. I couldn’t believe how crappy I felt after.. I guess because I read from a lot of people how it wasn’t too bad but wow the tingling, muscle spasms, bed sweating and vomiting from the anesthesia right after surgery sucked. I’m on calcium and calcitriol and then the synthroid(having to take 10 pills a day).
I am doing better everyday.. they sent off some lymph nodes but basically said they were big and they know that it’s travelled so I’m just waiting to hear then will do the radiation at home I guess is the plan.
My biggest complaint is my uvula is so swollen in the back of my throat from intubation that it’s legitimately resting on my tongue. It’s causing me to gag! Eating and drinking has been very difficult because of this. I’ve tried a few remedies from google and it hasn’t gone down yet. I read a lot of posts before my surgery and never seen anyone mention this before.
Hello all, first time poster here!
I was diagnosed with metastatic papillary thyroid cancer about a month ago after finding a very swollen lymph node in my neck. I was about 5 weeks postpartum at the time when I happened to notice a large hard lump on the right side of my neck. Went in to get it looked at and was assuming I'd get sent home saying it was just a swollen lymph node (seriously almost cancelled the appointment cause i thought it was nothing or somehow was related to being postpartum). My doctor expressed great concern as she found multiple masses in my neck. THAT RIGHT THERE was already enough to send me down the dark holes of google, and I was preparing for the worst. She then ordered me an ultrasound for the same day which indeed showed multiple abnormal masses. Then got the referral to the ENT who ordered the CT Scan and FNA biopsy.
Biopsy confirmed cancer. Was referred out to a different hospital since my ENT was uncomfortable in his ability to perform a neck dissection. Met with the new ENT/surgeon and he seemed quite confident in his abilities to get this taken care of.
Now here I am 8 days post-op. Recovery has seriously had its ups and downs. It is somehow better than I thought it would be, but also it REALLY FUCKING SUCKS. Not being able to care for my 3 month old baby girl has to be the hardest part of it all. Not being able to pick her up, and not being able to look down at her without wincing in pain/discomfort is honestly so so so so hard. I've cried about it almost every day.
Happy to have found this subreddit as it has already brought comfort and insight. Picture was taken 8 days post-op.
https://preview.redd.it/qwbnf78qdy871.jpg?width=2448&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=6238d418ba5f99d55bf1c9b9c918eeb20087a0ca
Hi fellow warriors! I had a left neck dissection 3-4 weeks ago for my 3rd time with PTC and was wondering if anyone else has had experience with this surgery. I returned to work three days ago and wound up leaving early because my shoulder was bothering me. I’m concerned about the ability to continue to do my job and for how much longer I should expect this discomfort. My dr originally told me I would be able to return to work within 1-2 weeks but I’m still experiencing discomfort (even without lifting things).
For those who had a neck dissection done, what was your experience? Any info you wish you’d known beforehand or been prepared for?
I am scheduled for a TT & bilateral central neck dissection. I’ve been reading up on it but still not entirely sure what to expect and would love any advice from those who’ve it done, hear how your recovery has gone etc. Thank you!
Me again… I’m 7 weeks post TT and neck dissection for PTC. They removed 47 lymph nodes during surgery and 14 came back positive. My thyroglobulin last week was 6.1 and antibodies were trace, so my endo ordered an ultrasound that was done today. US found one lymph node that had all the same cancer markings as my diagnostic ultrasound. I have not had RAI yet but my Dr had told me that if they found any signs of cancer in the lymph nodes, that I would require another surgery. From what I’m reading, it seems that residual cancer is fairly common in the lymph nodes and I was wondering what you all have experienced with similar findings. Although my surgery and recovery went well, I’m dreading the thought of another one, even though I’m assuming it won’t be nearly as invasive. Thanks!
Update: my TSH was also at 7 so my endo increased my levo dose and wants to wait 6 weeks and recheck everything. She’s stating that high TSH can increase thyroglobulin as well. I haven’t been able to find much on that when searching.
Anyone have this complication after their TT and neck dissection. My shoulder is making progress (I am getting some range of motion back) but my scapula is total out of place and I’m in a lot of pain. I’m 4 months post op.
What were your experiences? I’m having a ( right ) neck dissection and TT I get my right side of my neck will be numb but any other physical side effects coming my way?
