Thyroid Cancer: What is the Thyroid Gland and what are common Cancer Types?

There are a variety of cancers, and one such cancer is of the thyroid. Thyroid cancer is due to cancerous growth and tumor in the thyroid gland. In today’s medical world, various treatments and procedures help remove the cancerous tumors, or in advanced cases, the thyroid is removed altogether. There are various types of thyroid cancers; let’s put some light on the cancer types and why cancer is caused in the thyroid.

What is the thyroid?

The thyroid gland is a gland that is of butterfly shape situated below the Adam’s apple and larynx, on the front side of the neck. The thyroid gland is part of the endocrine gland system and is responsible for hormone regulation in the body. It produces the thyroxine hormone by absorbing the iodine from the blood. The thyroxine is responsible for metabolism in the body. The shape of the thyroid is bi-lobed, which is joined by an isthmus. It is quite small, and when a tumor develops, it can be felt.

Cells of thyroid

When the cells of the thyroid gland start growing, it can form a tumor or nodules. Now, these modules can be cancerous or benign. In the case of benign, these tumors will not spread and will not cause cancer. But in the case of cancerous cells, the tumors become malignant and will start spreading. There are two types of cells in the thyroid that can cause cancer:

1. Follicular cells: these cells are responsible for thyroxine production.
2. C-cells: these cells are responsible for calcitonin production, which regulates calcium levels.

Types of cancer

Various cancer types can grow in the thyroid gland:

• Papillary cancer: in this, cancer growth is from follicular cells. This cancer grows slowly but can spread into lymph nodes. This is the most common cancer type.
• Follicular cancer: this cancer also grows through follicular cells, but they are not common. They do not spread to lymph nodes.
• Medullary thyroid cancer: the MTC is a cancer of C-cells and is due to genetic tendency. In 25 percent of cases, medullary thyroid cancer is familial and can be stopped if diagnosed early.
• Anaplastic thyroid cancer: this cancer type is rare and is known to grow the fastest. It is ill differentiated and can grow from benign tumors as well. It grows so fast that treating it can be quite difficult.

Thyroid cancer is treatable these days, as there are various types of treatments and procedures. The thyroid cancer can be treated surgically and can be treated through medication like lenvakast 10 mg.