The Thyroid 1 year follow up

It's been almost a year since I made the choice to go an alternative route with my thyroid health.

I had a consult with Dr. Mazza in Florida and I put my trust in her hands. On May 14th, 2022, I underwent a new type of treatment called radiofrequency ablation of my thyroid nodule.

2022 was a roller-coaster. My thyroid seemed to be inflamed most of the time, like a tiny balloon had lodged itself right in my throat. Everytime I swalled to hard or took too big a bite of food I was reminded of my calamity. That lump in my throat could still be cancerous. 

I occupied myself with new pursuits. I took up more serious forays into cooking. I bought high quality knives and pans. I studied recipes and techniques. I tried things I'd never done before. I immersed myself in the unknown. My diet had radically shifted, and I wanted to continue to support this new way of eating and thinking.

In February I had a remote followup with Dr. Mazza. She reviewed my imaging from a recent Xray and Ultrasound. She estimated my nodule had decreased by 20%. He had hoped for more. I was elated with any reduction. 

On April 10, 2023, I had my (nearly) 1 year follow up. I was nervous as fuck. The last 2 years of medical anxiety was coming to a head.

As I sat in the chair and Dr. Mazza ran the cold metal of the ultrasound over my neck I hoped I had made the right choice. I hoped I had put my faith in the right place.

She did calculations of the images from May 15, 2022 and compared them to the ones she just took.

"I was hoping for more, but you’ve seen about a 50% reduction in nodule volume".

FUCK YES.

"I would have been happy with a 30% decrease," I told her.

Even if there is cancer in my thyroid somewhere, it is dwindling. Radiofrequency ablation has been used in our nations to treat cancer. I put my hope in that if I did have cancer it was being eradicated by the RFA and my lifestyle changes.

Dr. Mazza also offered another procedure to further reduce the nodule. In the fall of this year I will be reevaluated to get a other ablation to reduce the nodule even more.

Keep trying. Keep experimenting. Keep evolving and never cease.