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Types of Thyroid Cancer |
There are five main thyroid cancer types:
Papillary
This is the most common type and often presents in young women. However, this
does not mean it cannot be found in older people and men.
If this type of cancer spreads it often goes to the lymph glands/nodes in
the neck or nearby although, like with any cancer, it can spread elsewhere.
Follicular
This is the second most common type and tends to occur in a slightly
older group. This type of cancer is much less likely to spread to the lymph
glands and may spread to other parts of the body through the
bloodstream.
Medullary
This is a much rarer type. In a quarter of patients (25%) this cancer is
caused by an inherited faulty gene (called the RET proto oncogene) that
can run in families.
If this type of cancer is diagnosed it is usual to check to see if it is the
inherited type so that other family members can be offered screening
blood tests to see if they are at risk and whether they need any
treatment.
If a parent has the inherited form of medullary thyroid cancer there is a
50% (1 in 2) chance that each of their children could also have inherited
the faulty gene.
The inherited type can also be associated with other uncommon cancers
and patients may be diagnosed with MEN 2 syndrome (Multiple Endocrine
Neoplasia syndrome 2). For more information go to http://www.amend.org.uk
If you have medullary cancer and are interested in participating in our project, please click here.
Anaplastic
This is another rare type and presents at an older age. The majority of
patients are older than 60 years. It tends to grow more quickly than the
other types and can be difficult to treat.
If you have anaplastic cancer and are interested in participating in our project, please click here.
Lymphoma
Non Hodgkin’s lymphoma is another rare thyroid tumour. It is treated like
lymphomas that can arise anywhere in the body rather than like the other
types of thyroid cancer. The treatment in this case may involve
chemotherapy (drug treatment) and radiotherapy (x ray treatment). For further information - www.lymphoma.org.uk
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