Thyroid cancer occurs 3 to 4 times more often in women than in men. Papillary thyroid cancer is the most common form of thyroid cancer.
Symptoms of thyroid cancer are often vague and are similar regardless of gender. However, thyroid cancer is often discovered at an earlier age in women than in men.
In this post, we will learn about the symptoms of thyroid cancer in women. It also explores testing, treatment, and disease outlook (prognosis).
Notes on gender and gender terminology
Verywell Health recognizes that sex and gender are related concepts, but are not the same. To accurately reflect the sources, this article uses terms such as “female,” “male,” “feminine,” and “male” as used in the sources.
First symptoms of thyroid cancer in women
Women are typically diagnosed with thyroid cancer from their childbearing years until their early 40s. The peak age at diagnosis in women is 40 to 44 years. On the other hand, men often develop thyroid cancer at an older age. The average age of thyroid cancer in men is 70 to 74 years.
Many of the common symptoms of this condition are caused by other health conditions, including those that affect the thyroid gland, such as goiter and Graves' disease.
Common symptoms of thyroid cancer in both men and women include:
- Painless neck lump (nodule) on the front of the neck
- swollen lymph nodes in the neck
- Neck pain that may radiate to the ears
- frog
- persistent cough
- voice change
- Difficulty breathing
- Having difficulty swallowing
- fatigue
Small asymptomatic papillary thyroid cancer tumors are more likely to be detected and diagnosed early in women than in men. Because these tumors are so small, they often go undetected unless we actively look for them. It is unclear why asymptomatic tumors are found more often in women than in men.
If you experience symptoms such as changes in your menstrual cycle or facial flushing that are generally associated with menopause, you may suspect thyroid cancer. However, these types of symptoms are not typically associated with thyroid cancer. Hot flashes can be caused by medullary thyroid cancer (a rare form of thyroid cancer) and affect both genders.
The thyroid gland produces hormones that help regulate ovulation and the menstrual cycle. Unlike thyroid diseases such as hypothyroidism (underactive thyroid) and hyperthyroidism (overactive thyroid), thyroid cancer does not cause changes in ovulation or menstruation.
Common thyroid cancer in women
Four main types of thyroid cancer can affect women: they:
- nipple: The most common type of thyroid cancer, the most common cancer diagnosed in women under 25 years of age.
- follicular: Most common in women over 40
- water quality: The rarest form of thyroid cancer
- Anaplasia: Most common in women over 60 years of age
Symptoms that appear without a diagnosis of thyroid cancer
Symptoms of thyroid cancer may appear even without thyroid cancer. Not all neck lumps become cancerous. Thyroid nodules can be caused by a variety of conditions, including benign and malignant.
Papillary thyroid cancer grows slowly and may cause mild symptoms. Thyroid cancer can remain unrecognized or undiagnosed for months or years.
In contrast, anaplastic thyroid cancer, a less common type, is aggressive and grows quickly. This type of cancer can cause a large neck lump to suddenly form within a few weeks or months.
Asymptomatic at diagnosis
Thyroid cancer symptoms are often subtle and may be overlooked. If you have a cancerous thyroid nodule, you may not be aware of it for some time.
Most thyroid cancers are asymptomatic (few or no symptoms). For this reason, you may be surprised not to know that you have a thyroid condition when you are first diagnosed. However, keep in mind that thyroid cancer is highly treatable and often curable.
Disease diagnosed instead of thyroid cancer
If you have symptoms such as a neck lump, it is more likely to be caused by a condition other than thyroid cancer, such as:
Test to diagnose thyroid cancer in women
Symptoms of thyroid cancer, such as a lump in the throat or swollen lymph nodes, are sometimes discovered during a routine physical exam. If you or your healthcare provider suspects thyroid cancer, additional testing will be done.
Your health care provider will ask you questions about your symptoms. They will also want to know if you have a family history of thyroid cancer and other conditions associated with thyroid disease. They will also ask about potential risk factors, especially exposure to radiation during childhood.
Your health care provider may note your body mass index (BMI) because your risk of thyroid cancer increases with excess weight.
Screening for thyroid cancer in women includes:
- ultrasonic wave: Through an imaging test using sound waves, it is determined whether the lump in the neck is hard, cancerous, cystic, or filled with fluid.
- radioactive iodine scan: This imaging test evaluates neck masses for some types of thyroid cancer and other thyroid diseases.
- Positron emission tomography (PET) scan: This type of imaging test checks for spread to nearby lymph nodes and other areas.
- Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI): This is an imaging test that analyzes the thyroid gland to check whether it has spread near or far.
- Computed tomography (CT) scan: This scan evaluates the size and location of the tumor.
- chest x-ray: This imaging test checks for spread to the lungs.
- blood test: Thyroid function tests are used to detect or rule out other forms of thyroid disease.
- biopsy: A biopsy is required for a definitive diagnosis of cancer.
In a biopsy, a tissue sample is taken and analyzed in a laboratory to look for evidence of malignancy. Typically, a fine needle aspiration technique will be used to extract cells from the suspected nodule.
How to Treat Thyroid Cancer and Manage Symptoms
If you are diagnosed with thyroid cancer, your treatment method will be determined by the type of cancer you have and the extent of metastasis (if any). The most common site for thyroid cancer to spread is to nearby lymph nodes in the neck.
If you have no symptoms and your cancer is growing slowly, your health care provider may recommend watchful waiting with ongoing monitoring rather than aggressive treatment.
The most common form of treatment for thyroid cancer is surgical removal of all or part of the thyroid gland. If the malignant tumor has spread to the lymph nodes in the neck, it may also be removed surgically, usually at the same time.
When the entire thyroid gland is removed (thyroidectomy), thyroid hormones that mimic thyroid function are administered.
Chemotherapy is not commonly used for most types of thyroid cancer. However, in some cases, it may be recommended in conjunction with external beam radiation therapy for anaplastic thyroid cancer.
If the cancer has spread to the neck or other parts of the body, a non-surgical procedure called radioactive iodine (RAI) therapy may be recommended. During this procedure, radioactive iodine is given in pill, liquid, or injection form.
If these methods are not effective, a kinase inhibitor, a type of targeted therapy, may be used depending on the characteristics of the cancer. Kinase is a type of protein found in cells. Their job is to transmit signals that tell cells how to behave and grow. Blocking the kinase can sometimes help treat cancer.
Thyroid cancer prognosis and treatment success
Most types of thyroid cancer are highly treatable and completely curable. The overall 5-year relative survival rate for all types of thyroid cancer combined is 98.4%.
The type and stage of thyroid cancer you have will determine your potential prognosis. Keep in mind that these numbers are only estimates and do not reflect the experience of all thyroid cancer patients. Additionally, it is based on treatments that were used at least 5 years ago.
localized thyroid cancer
Papillary, follicular, and medullary thyroid cancers all have a 5-year relative survival rate of 99.5% for localized cancers that have not spread outside the thyroid gland.
Anaplastic thyroid cancer, the most aggressive type, has a much lower five-year survival rate of 39% for localized cancer.
localized thyroid cancer
When cancer has spread to nearby areas (regional spread), the relative 5-year survival rate decreases slightly for papillary, follicular, and medullary cancer, but significantly for anaplastic cancer.
- Nipple: 99%
- Follicle: 98%
- Bone marrow: 92%
- Anaplasia: 11%.
remote thyroid cancer
If the cancer has metastasized (spread) to a distant part of the body, the 5-year survival rate is:
- Nipples: 74%
- Follicle: 67%
- Bone marrow: 43%
- Anaplasia: 4%
summary
Thyroid cancer occurs approximately 3 to 4 times more often in women than in men. Women tend to be diagnosed with this disease at an earlier age than men.
Thyroid cancer symptoms are often subtle and may not be noticed for long periods of time. Symptoms may include a painless lump, swollen neck lymph nodes, or neck pain.
Most thyroid cancers, including papillary cancer (the most common type), are highly treatable and treatable. The exception is anaplastic thyroid cancer, which is very aggressive but less common.