Are you facing a thyroid cancer diagnosis or other thyroid condition? You're not alone. Thyroid issues touch a large percentage of the American population. This dialogue helps listeners understand thyroid cancers and other conditions, from the most common to least, and explains current trends and treatment improvements.

Listen and learn

• What different types of thyroid cancer exist, and what are commonalities and statistical outcomes;
• How is thyroid cancer treatment advancing in line with research, including advanced thyroid cancers; and
• How do thyroid conditions affect the body compared to other multiple endocrine neoplasia conditions and what are some of the latest treatments.

Dr. Bryan Haugen is a physician and endocrinologist with the University of Colorado. He and Richard discuss multiple thyroid diagnoses, and Richard shares his own experience with thyroid cancer.

Dr. Haugen, in turn, explains many possibilities that patients face for treatment. This includes, for example, why some thyroid cancers require surgery and others require radioactive iodine or broad-spectrum chemotherapy or a combination. He goes into detail about the most common type, papillary thyroid cancer, and why doctors are seeing more of it in the last few years.

He also increases listener's comfort level with a lot of the jargon with thyroid conditions, explaining the difference between targeted and directed therapies, the difference between differentiated and undifferentiated cells in cancer, and the role of the parathyroid. Finally, he provides pros and cons for various treatments, addresses if there are concerns with radioactive iodine, as well as how he treats a patient that isn't responding effectively to basic synthroid medications. So, if you are ready for a helpful primer on thyroid function and complications, sit back and learn.

Episode also available on Apple Podcasts: apple.co/30PvU9C