Patti Turner survived thyroid cancer | radioactive iodine | external beam radiation Hurthle cells

What began as a small lump in her throat turned into a diagnosis of thyroid cancer for Patti Turner. It took two surgical procedures to remove her thyroid, but there was more to her treatment regimen. She tells the @CancerInterviews podcast had to undergo radioactive iodine and external beam radiation before attaining survivorship. Without a thyroid, Patti says she tires easily, but is thrilled to be alive and see her grandchildren grow up.

In 2011, Patti Turner of Dawson Creek, British Columbia, Canada, discovered a small lump in her throat. It was so small nobody else noticed it and it caused no pain, but when it didn’t go away, she sought medical attention. Her doctor sent Patti to get an ultrasound and a biopsy, if necessary. She underwent the ultrasound only, but a few weeks later, she received a phone call from her doctor, who noted she still had to get the biopsy.

The biopsy showed she had Hurthle cells, which can be either benign or malignant. This necessitated surgery to remove the right thyroid lobe and the isthmus, which resulted in a diagnosis of papillary thyroid cancer. Two weeks later, Patti was told her diagnosis had been upgraded to anaplastic thyroid cancer, a much more aggressive form of the disease, one that needed immediate attention.

Patti was relieved to learn the cancer had not spread from her thyroid, which meant she would not have to go on a chemotherapy regimen. However, she did need a second surgical procedure to remove the left thyroid lobe. The surgery was a success, but six weeks later, she had an appointment with a radiation oncologist. In lieu of chemotherapy, Patti would have to have radioactive iodine, then thirty external beam radiation treatments, followed by more radioactive iodine.

Dawson Creek is in a remote part of British Columbia and the nearest big city was Edmonton, Alberta, a six-hour drive away. During her treatment and recovery phase, she and her husband made the drive thirteen times. When she was discharged from the hospital after the final radioactive iodine treatment, on the drive home, she could not sit next to her husband.

Once they got home, because of the radioactive iodine, she and her husband had to sleep in separate bedrooms and use separate bathrooms. Their son stayed with a friend and their dog had to stay elsewhere as well. However, Patti Turner eventually reached survivorship.

Since then, Patti has had a heart attack and experienced a hip replacement, but she admits she has no way of knowing if that was tied to her two surgical procedures. What she does know is that without a thyroid, she tires easily. Yet she is extremely grateful that she is alive to engage in sewing and to watch her grandchildren grow.

Additional Resources:

Support Group:

Thyroid Cancer Survivors’ Association: htttps://www.thyca.org

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