Autumn is worrying, easy to worry, is your thyroid okay?
Recently, the reporter found that after a physical examination, many colleagues and netizens found that they and the people around them had more or less thyroid problems, many of whom were young people. On social platforms, there are even many young people in their twenties and thirties who have recorded their experiences of detecting thyroid nodules.
Source: Little Red Book
There are also media reports that a hospital in Nanjing has performed 70 thyroid cancer surgeries in a week, of which young patients in their twenties and thirties account for the majority, "The youngest thyroid cancer patient we have treated is an 11-year-old primary school student, and a patient in his twenties has a problem every week." The interviewed doctor said.
So is the prevalence of thyroid-related diseases getting higher and younger?
7 times higher than the reference value
The girl got the test report and her legs were weak
After getting the entry physical examination report, Xiaoyi, a post-00s girl, was scared and weak. The test results showed that Xiaoyi's thyroglobulin antibody value was as high as 420.1IU/mL, which was 7 times higher than the highest value of the reference range. ”
Photo courtesy of the interviewee
The reason why Xiaoyi is so nervous about thyroid problems is because her college classmates have just been diagnosed with thyroid cancer, "I have the impression that she has always been in good health, running and playing ball every day, getting married and having children after graduation, happy and happy, I didn't expect to be diagnosed with thyroid cancer just after my birthday this year, and now I have undergone surgery and recovered quite well, but the treatment process is also very tormenting, and it is not easy." ”
Fortunately, after thyroid B ultrasound examination, although Xiaoyi has two thyroid nodules, they are both benign, one is 14*5mm and the other is 3*2. "Regular check-ups are fine, no need to take medicine, but I never thought that thyroid disease would be so close to me", Xiaoyi couldn't help but sigh.
Are thyroid nodules really getting younger? Not really.
Thyroid nodules are discrete lesions in the thyroid gland caused by abnormal, focal growth of thyroid cells.
Zhang Yu, deputy chief physician of the Department of Oncology Surgery of Hangzhou First People's Hospital, said that many young people have shared their experiences of detecting thyroid nodules, "not because the incidence of thyroid nodules has increased at a younger age and the incidence has increased, but because the detection rate of thyroid nodules has increased." The situation in Korea is similar, as the country with the highest incidence of thyroid cancer in the world, the main reason is that the application of high-resolution color ultrasound in physical examination is popular, and the detection rate of thyroid cancer is high. ”
Moreover, many young people will do thyroid examinations when they do entry physical examinations, and if there are thyroid nodules, they will naturally be detected, "coupled with the fact that young people are good at sharing their lives on the Internet, it will give people the illusion that there are more thyroid nodules in young people." ”
Touch yourself 800 times a day
Feeling sentenced to life imprisonment
Many people have this question when they are diagnosed with thyroid disease: why is this happening? Why me? Is it all I have to wait to find out a nodule?
On social media, the reporter found that many patients with thyroid nodules and thyroid cancer have experienced a long period of psychological torment, and some even need to rely on sleeping pills to fall asleep every day, with very large mood swings, easy to get angry and anxious about the future.
Xiao Zhou, a post-95 girl who is engaged in auditing, was found to have thyroid nodules as early as 5 years ago. "At that time, I felt a protruding 'small bag' on my neck, and I was very panicked, and I didn't know that it was a thyroid nodule after I went to the hospital for examination."
Although it is a benign nodule, Xiao Zhou has always had a feeling of "sitting still", "touching his neck 800 times a day, I always feel that the nodule is getting bigger, and I often have insomnia." This nodule is like the sword of Dalmos, and it is like being sentenced to life imprisonment, do you have to wait until when it becomes cancerous? ”
Photo courtesy of the interviewee
The incidence of thyroid nodules is very high, "the data of our physical examination center shows that the incidence of thyroid nodules is nearly 76% in the general population, and 76 out of 100 people have thyroid nodules, but the vast majority of them are benign nodules of type III or II. Dr. Zhang Yu said in popular science.
Although the detection rate of thyroid nodules is not low, Dr. Zhang Yu said that there is no need to be overly anxious. "Theoretically, if it is a type II or class III benign tumor, it is generally unlikely to become cancerous. It does not mean that a benign tumor becomes cancerous when it grows, and the probability of benign malignant transformation is very low. ”
For patients with thyroid nodules, "the specific score of TI-RADS should be obtained by B-ultrasound, and then the size of the nodule should be combined to determine the treatment measures, whether regular reexamination or needle biopsy is required." ”
I didn't dare to eat out, so I used all kinds of methods
Someone who came over suggested "breaking away"
While paying attention to diet and daily rest, Xiao Zhou, like many young patients with thyroid nodules, began to look for various ways to save himself.
"Changed to non-iodized salt, because I was afraid of eating iodized salt and not eating out, thyroid nodule patch, loose ointment, foot soaking bag, loose knot tea, cold compress gel...... As long as it is written that it can eliminate thyroid nodules, health products and imported medicines have been used. But Xiao Zhou told reporters that these things have almost no effect, and her thyroid nodules have not become smaller or disappeared, but some patients find these methods useful.
Photo courtesy of the interviewee
Dr. Zhang Yu disagrees with the practice of eating non-iodized salt for patients with thyroid nodules.
"Since 1995, iodized salt has been widely used in mainland China, and the incidence of thyroid nodules has not increased since then, and there is no clear correlation between simple thyroid nodules and iodine intake. In addition to patients with hyperthyroidism, if the doctor does not emphasize the need to eat non-iodized salt, it is recommended that everyone do not eat non-iodized salt without authorization, especially for pregnant women and children, iodine deficiency will affect development. Even in the coastal areas of the mainland, if you eat non-iodized salt, you will be deficient in iodine. ”
Dr. Zhang Yu has a neutral attitude towards drinking dandelion tea and pasting thyroid elimination patches.
"There is no scientific data to suggest that these things are useful for thyroid nodule treatment, and I am not for it but not against it. Because some people firmly believe that these things are right, they will have positive beliefs about themselves, and they also have a certain psychological comforting effect. ”
Source: Little Red Book
Zhang Yu said that she often reassures patients with thyroid nodules that they do not need to be too anxious. "Judging from the 76% incidence of thyroid nodules, in fact, most people have it, and a benign thyroid gland is like a small pimple, which hardly affects life expectancy and health."
Sister Wang, who had thyroid nodule removal surgery 20 years ago, also shared her treatment experience with reporters: breaking, giving up, and leaving.
"Within half a year, my thyroid nodules developed to category 4, affecting the respiratory tract, and I had to have surgery." In the face of such a rapid illness, Sister Wang said that she was about to collapse at that time, "I need to rely on sleeping pills to fall asleep every day, my mood swings are very large, and I am easily angry and anxious about the future." ”
From the diagnosis of thyroid nodules to the postoperative operation for so many years, Sister Wang has reflected a lot, because of her work as a teacher, her teaching and scientific research pressure is very high, she often stays up late to prepare for classes, overeating when she was young, and her family changes at that time made her depressed mood almost every day, which also accelerated the process of thyroid nodules to a certain extent.
Sister Wang, who is now in good health, wants to give three words to thyroid nodules patients - break, give up, and leave, maintain a stable and indifferent mood, and do not like things or feel sad about themselves. "Now the treatment of thyroid nodules is very mature, even thyroid cancer is also called 'happy cancer', and the recovery is very good, especially young people have a good physical foundation, and there are real problems in the body, make up your mind to change bad habits, maintain a good mood, and everything will be fine."
Dr. Zhang Yu also advises everyone, "Regular work and rest, regular physical exercise, don't stay up late, pay attention to emotional stability, and a relatively healthy work and rest style can make people feel better and face the unknowns and challenges in life more positively." ”
Is your thyroid okay?
Source: 19th Floor