Insurance covered it!

There were so many bills from doctors, hospitals, pharmacies and on and on after all of the medical visits and procedures.  I am so grateful to have health insurance.  The two shots of Thyrogen alone was over $2,000!!!  Just check out this bill…Thyrogen receipt.  Even my doctor was surprised that it was covered by my insurance at 100%. 

Then there was the bill for the Thyroidectomy from the hospital, which was over $6,000!!!  Here it is…Thyroidectomy bill.  After going back and forth, it was all covered by insurance except for $275.  I was more than happy to pay that portion.

There were other bills of course, but those were the big ones through my thyroid cancer journey.  If I didn’t have insurance, I would owe over $8,000.  It just makes me think about all of the people who don’t have health insurance or who have plans with really high deductibles.  I can see how easy it would be to get into major debt due to medical bills.  I’m very blessed that mine was covered.  My heart goes out to all of the people going through there own journies with cancer or other illnesses who can’t pay the medical bills.

 

Thyroidectomy from a Recovering Addict’s Perspective

On January 29, 2009, I had my thyroidectomy.  Before I went in for surgery, the doctor was not able to tell me if he was going to do a partial or total thyroidectomy because they were not sure if it had spread.  So the plan was to send part of my thyroid over for testing while I was still under.  If the results came back that it was cancer, they would remove the rest.  I knew in my gut that they would end up taking out my entire thyroid. 

Most of my fear was not because of the surgery or even the cancer.  I felt alright about both because I knew that it was what needed to be done and that I would be alright.  My fear went deeper into thoughts about having to take pain medicine after the surgery.  I am a recovering addict and at that time had a little over 4 years and 9 months clean.  I had heard so many people share in meetings about how they had lost years of clean time because they had a surgery and started to abuse the pain medicine.  This was one of my greatest fears.  But I got through it.  I had a great support system of friends and family that knew about my concern.  The doctor was aware that I was a recovering addict as well.  So when I stayed at the hospital the night after my surgery, they offered me pain medicine.  I wasn’t in too much pain and didn’t take it.  The next day my doctor wrote me a prescription for pain meds and I tore it up.  I paid the price the following couple of nights when the pain woke me up over and over.  I managed to get through those times without the pain medicine.  Looking back now, I needed to take it at night.  If I have surgery again and am in a lot of pain, I will take the pain medicine.  I will not put myself through that pain again. 

Here I am 8 months later and my scar is barely noticable on my neck from the thyroidectomy.  My speaking voice is back to normal, but my singing and cheering voice is still damaged.  But the cancer is gone and I am still clean with almost five and a half years.  Miracles do happen!

 

 

Thyroidectomy and Voice

Thyroidectomy Procedure
Your thyroid is a butterfly-shaped gland in the base of your neck. The thyroid produces hormones that control your metabolism and affects everything from the rate your heart beats to how quickly you burn off calories.
A thyroidectomy, or surgical removal of your thyroid gland, is used to treat thyroid nodules, thyroid cancer, or hyperthyroidism. During a total thyroidectomy procedure, your entire thyroid gland (both lobes and the narrow band that connects the two lobes, called the isthmus) will be removed. During a partial thyroidectomy, only part of your thyroid will be removed. Partial thyroidectomies can be categorized into subtotal thyroidectomies, where one whole lobe, the isthmus, and most of the other lobe are removed, and a thyroid lobectomy, where only one lobe is removed (with or without the isthmus).
A thyroidectomy is surgery and is usually done under general anesthesia, taking several hours to complete. During a thyroidectomy procedure, a small incision is made in the front of the neck and the thyroid tissue is removed. In some cases, you may have to undergo a tracheotomy during or after the surgery, where a tube is inserted in your trachea to help you breathe.

Effects of Thyroidectomy on Voice
One important concern of patients is how a thyroidectomy procedure may affect their voice after surgery. Both temporary and permanent changes in voice have been well documented following thyroidectomy surgery. Between 16 and 40 percent of patients may have temporary changes in voice soon after a thyroid removal surgery and, by three months post-op, between 2 and 20 percent of patients still complained of complications with their voice. Changes in your voice after a thyroidectomy may include hoarseness, easy fatigue, trouble with high pitches and your singing voice, and decreased voice projection.
Although there is some debate regarding why your voice may be affected by a thyroidectomy surgery, the most common causes include damage to your nerves that control your vocal cord, which are located around our thyroid gland; damage to your strap muscles, which function during talking and singing, or vocal folds; changes in your laryngeal mucosa; or changes in your general condition following surgery. Of these possible causes, damage to your nerves is the most likely to cause permanent changes in your voice.
According to various studies, somewhere between zero and twenty percent of patients have any nerve damage at all, and most studies claim less than 6 percent of thyroidectomy procedures result in nerve damage.

Treatment for Changes in Voice
Interestingly, new studies suggest that treatment with certain steroids prior to thyroidectomy procedures may help improve temporary changes in voice, as well as decrease nausea, vomiting, and pain. This may be worth discussing you’re your doctor prior to surgery.
While permanent thyroidectomy effects on voice are rare, there are some ways to treat this condition. Laryngeal electromyography can give information about how the nerves are working, or aren’t working, to control the muscles of the vocal cords, which allows for a definite diagnosis of laryngeal nerve damage. This procedure, along with vidoestroboscopy, which shows your vocal cords in action, and electroglottography, which measures vocal fold vibrations, can be used to make and accurate diagnosis of the problem.
Laryngeal framework surgery, or thyroplasty, can be performed to try to correct problems resulting from a thyroidectomy procedure. Traditionally, laryngeal framework surgery was performed with the hopes of improving the position of your vocal cords so they vibrate better during speaking or singing. This can be used to repair torn, dislocated, or paralyzed vocal cords by bringing them into a better position for a strong voice.
Recently, a technique called laryngeal reinnervation has opened the field to a new treatment option. Although still in its infancy, this surgical procedure may allow for reinnervation of paralyzed vocal cords damaged during a thyroidectomy in which the laryngeal nerves near the thyroid gland were damaged.

Article written by kristenrosenthal on her blog http://www.brighthub.com/science/medical/articles/33442.aspx

 

Goodbye Thyroid ~ Hello Thyroidectomy

According to my doctors, since I had thyroid cancer the best option was to have a thyroidectomy.  I do admit, it was not a pleasant thought to imagine a surgeon cutting my throat open and removing MY thyroid.  I could think of plenty of other things I’d like to spend time doing.  After all, it was my one and only thyroid.  It had been working for me for over 35 years.  But the cancer cells decided to make my thyroid their home.  And it was time for all of it to go!  

So on January 29, 2009 at an extremely early hour, I got up and said goodbye to my thyroid.  I was a little nervous for the surgery but had an underlying calmness.  I knew that it was going to be alright.  Everything works out the way it is supposed to.

I got to the hospital and checked in.  My wonderful Mom came with me and the rest of my family were calling in periodically to see how I was doing.  After filling out lots of paperwork and signing many forms, they gave me the beautiful surgery outfit to put on.  I was stylin’!

I was ready to go.  Time to say my final goodbye to my thyroid and hello to the thyroidectomy.