I too had severe mono as a teen. There is a link between mono and some types of cancer... I dont know if there is any link or not between mono and thyriod cancer thou?
Thyroid Cancer
- Thread starter eve789
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Hi everyone! No problem hijacking the thread 
This is a really interesting discussion and I've quite enjoyed it. I've spent the last couple of days just trying to mentally adjust to my diagnosis. As I told my doctor, I'm really not afraid of the "c word," much less so because thyroid cancer has such a good prognosis. What I am afraid of is what comes after, and I wonder how my ability to recover from surgery and deal with radioactive iodine treatment and find a proper dose of thyroid replacement hormone will compare to patients who were "healthy" to begin with. I am more sensitive to everything, and have so many symptoms and issues, that I'm concerned about my recovery and long-term management. Also, after the last several months of ME/CFS, I think I fear long-term suffering and diminished life far more than death.
But, all things considered, I am actually pretty optimistic.
On a separate note, my urine lactic acid levels have come back high on two Metametrix tests. Tumors (as I understand it) both produce and derive energy from lactic acid. Anaerobic metabolism is good for tumor growth. Given how quickly I think my body must shift into anaerobic metabolism, I wonder if that provides a more favorable environment for cancer. (And of course there's the finding of high levels of lactic acid in the cerebrospinal fluid of PWCs)
This is a really interesting discussion and I've quite enjoyed it. I've spent the last couple of days just trying to mentally adjust to my diagnosis. As I told my doctor, I'm really not afraid of the "c word," much less so because thyroid cancer has such a good prognosis. What I am afraid of is what comes after, and I wonder how my ability to recover from surgery and deal with radioactive iodine treatment and find a proper dose of thyroid replacement hormone will compare to patients who were "healthy" to begin with. I am more sensitive to everything, and have so many symptoms and issues, that I'm concerned about my recovery and long-term management. Also, after the last several months of ME/CFS, I think I fear long-term suffering and diminished life far more than death. But, all things considered, I am actually pretty optimistic.
On a separate note, my urine lactic acid levels have come back high on two Metametrix tests. Tumors (as I understand it) both produce and derive energy from lactic acid. Anaerobic metabolism is good for tumor growth. Given how quickly I think my body must shift into anaerobic metabolism, I wonder if that provides a more favorable environment for cancer. (And of course there's the finding of high levels of lactic acid in the cerebrospinal fluid of PWCs)
Eve 789,
Sorry I disappeared yesterday. I started typing a response and it ended up being so long that I decided I needed to save it and get some rest before posting. I didn't realize how tired I had become trying to type. This happens to me a lot when I am trying to communicate in written form, I am somewhat different than others because the mental effort of writing takes twice as much energy as speaking. However, either way I try to participate my energy reserves fizzle out way before I would like them to. Having undergone the VO2 max testing recently, I have a better understanding why this happens but it is still frustrating not to be able to lie in bed and pound away on the keys on my laptop.
I do really want to provide you with information about my experience with this surgery because I think the more information you can gather from people who have been through this experience the better prepared you will be for undergoing this procedure. I will try to finish up my long response, but in the mean time here are my quick answers to your questions.
Yes, I definitely believe ME/CFS plays a role in the recovery and I believe it can also play a role in the actual surgery itself due to some patients sensitivities to anesthesia. The reason the response that I am working is rather long is because my experience may be very different than yours due to the fact that I underwent to two surgeries a week apart to complete the total thyroidectomy procedure. I also had a rough time with RAI side effects, so I wish I had known ahead of time that I was dealing with something more than just a problem with my thyroid.
Do you have a date scheduled for surgery? Have you done research on the facility and surgeon who will be performing your surgery? Have you read the recommendations for anesthesia for a person with ME/CFS who is undergoing surgery? Have you read about what the surgery will be like and how follow-up treatment will be handled? Just trying to figure out where you are in the process and if my detailed experience will be of help to you or if I should go with a shorten version. If these questions feel too personal for a Public Forum, I will be glad to correspond with you via private conversation. Otherwise, I have no problem corresponding back and forth here if the conversation in this thread might be helpful to others.
Wally
Sorry I disappeared yesterday. I started typing a response and it ended up being so long that I decided I needed to save it and get some rest before posting. I didn't realize how tired I had become trying to type. This happens to me a lot when I am trying to communicate in written form, I am somewhat different than others because the mental effort of writing takes twice as much energy as speaking. However, either way I try to participate my energy reserves fizzle out way before I would like them to. Having undergone the VO2 max testing recently, I have a better understanding why this happens but it is still frustrating not to be able to lie in bed and pound away on the keys on my laptop.
I do really want to provide you with information about my experience with this surgery because I think the more information you can gather from people who have been through this experience the better prepared you will be for undergoing this procedure. I will try to finish up my long response, but in the mean time here are my quick answers to your questions.
Yes, I definitely believe ME/CFS plays a role in the recovery and I believe it can also play a role in the actual surgery itself due to some patients sensitivities to anesthesia. The reason the response that I am working is rather long is because my experience may be very different than yours due to the fact that I underwent to two surgeries a week apart to complete the total thyroidectomy procedure. I also had a rough time with RAI side effects, so I wish I had known ahead of time that I was dealing with something more than just a problem with my thyroid.
Do you have a date scheduled for surgery? Have you done research on the facility and surgeon who will be performing your surgery? Have you read the recommendations for anesthesia for a person with ME/CFS who is undergoing surgery? Have you read about what the surgery will be like and how follow-up treatment will be handled? Just trying to figure out where you are in the process and if my detailed experience will be of help to you or if I should go with a shorten version. If these questions feel too personal for a Public Forum, I will be glad to correspond with you via private conversation. Otherwise, I have no problem corresponding back and forth here if the conversation in this thread might be helpful to others.
Wally
Hi, all.
I'd like to comment on what I think the mechanism is that causes increased prevalence of Hashimoto's thyroiditis and thyroid cancer in ME/CFS. It's based on the Glutathione Depletion--Methylation Cycle Block hypothesis for ME/CFS.
It's known that the thyroid gland normally produces hydrogen peroxide as part of the process of making thyroid hormones. Normally the reactions with hydrogen peroxide are caused to occur just outside the thyroid cells, and the interiors of the cells are protected from oxidative stress by glutathione.
According to the GD-MCB hypothesis (this part adopted from the work of Duthoit et al.), glutathione becomes depleted in the thyroid gland, as it does in certain other organs, tissues and cells of the body. The thyroid cells thus lose their protection against oxidative stress. Some of the hydrogen peroxide (being a neutral molecule) is able to diffuse into the cells. Without sufficient antioxidant protection, the resulting reactive oxidative species react with proteins, lipid membranes, and DNA. The reactions with proteins provoke autoimmune reactions, and this constitutes Hashimoto's autoimmune thyroiditis. Reactions with DNA can produce mutations that lead to thyroid cancer.
There have been some cases of Hashimoto's in ME/CFS that have apparently been reversed by methylation treatment, judging from reports that less or no thyroid hormone supplementation was needed after this treatment was begun. This would be consistent with the above hypothesis.
Best regards,
Rich
I'd like to comment on what I think the mechanism is that causes increased prevalence of Hashimoto's thyroiditis and thyroid cancer in ME/CFS. It's based on the Glutathione Depletion--Methylation Cycle Block hypothesis for ME/CFS.
It's known that the thyroid gland normally produces hydrogen peroxide as part of the process of making thyroid hormones. Normally the reactions with hydrogen peroxide are caused to occur just outside the thyroid cells, and the interiors of the cells are protected from oxidative stress by glutathione.
According to the GD-MCB hypothesis (this part adopted from the work of Duthoit et al.), glutathione becomes depleted in the thyroid gland, as it does in certain other organs, tissues and cells of the body. The thyroid cells thus lose their protection against oxidative stress. Some of the hydrogen peroxide (being a neutral molecule) is able to diffuse into the cells. Without sufficient antioxidant protection, the resulting reactive oxidative species react with proteins, lipid membranes, and DNA. The reactions with proteins provoke autoimmune reactions, and this constitutes Hashimoto's autoimmune thyroiditis. Reactions with DNA can produce mutations that lead to thyroid cancer.
There have been some cases of Hashimoto's in ME/CFS that have apparently been reversed by methylation treatment, judging from reports that less or no thyroid hormone supplementation was needed after this treatment was begun. This would be consistent with the above hypothesis.
Best regards,
Rich
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just wanted to say that your in my prayers for a quick recovery and to be well
I was just reading before something on EBV being involved in some head and neck cancers (it mentioned that in the research news.. virus and prostate cancer study I posted about with a link (in the other news/research area of this forum) ... not sure if by "neck cancer", if that was refering to thryiod cancer being connected to EBV or not.
I am pretty sure that the reference to neck cancer does not relate to cancer of the thyroid. Interesting that EBV has been suggested to have involvement in both MS and Stomach Cancer. Both of these types of illnesses have occurred on my mom's side of the family. A chronic case of a reoccurring herpes like viral infection in her throat, then H.Pylori, preceeded her diagnosis of stomach cancer.