I am afraid of lateral dissection
Hi everyone. I’m 22 and I’m looking for people who have had a similar experience.
I was initially diagnosed with papillary thyroid microcarcinoma (7 mm) and had my **first surgery, during which my thyroid was removed**. I was told that because the primary tumor was very small, the risk of significant spread was low.
I recently had a **second surgery**, this time to remove the central neck lymph nodes. The pathology was much more concerning than I expected: **7/7 lymph nodes removed were positive for metastasis**, with the largest metastatic focus measuring **12 mm**. However, there was **no extranodal extension (ENE)**.
My lateral neck lymph nodes have not been confirmed as metastatic. There were some suspicious nodes on ultrasound, but these were removed, and a Tg washout from one of the suspicious lateral nodes was **negative**.
I’m now going to have radioactive iodine (RAI) treatment.
I’m particularly worried about whether there could still be microscopic disease in the lateral lymph nodes, and whether RAI could eliminate microscopic iodine-avid disease without needing a lateral neck dissection.
**Has anyone had a similar situation, especially having 7/7 central lymph nodes positive after a second surgery, but no confirmed lateral metastases?**
Did you have RAI? Did you eventually need a lateral neck dissection? What happened to your Tg and ultrasound results afterward?
I’d really appreciate hearing from anyone who has gone through something similar.