Thyroid Cancer: A Guide for Patients

This book is a valuable and extensive source of information about thyroid cancer and is specifically written for the patient with thyroid cancer. However, family and friends of patients who have thyroid cancer will also find this book useful.

The book discusses a wide spectrum of aspects about thyroid nodules and cancer. It is discusses the basics of the thyroid gland, the evaluation of thyroid nodules, the various types of thyroid cancer, their prognosis, and the initial diagnostic evaluation and treatment of the four major types of thyroid cancer. This includes the role of surgery and other treatments. The book also discusses diets, hormone treatment, and thyroid cancer in children and adolescents. One chapter presents the personal stories of several patients, who have or have had thyroid cancer, as well as a discussion by a pyschologist and psychiatrist. The book concludes with chapters on additional treatment alternatives, information on clinical research trials, and additional sources of information.

The book is organized and indexed to help the patient or the patient's family or friends find information that may be important for them.

Twenty-eight contributors wrote this book, and they include many physicians renown in their medical specialty, other health care professionals involved with thyroid cancer, and patients who have or have had thyroid cancer.

The book was edited by three individuals.

Douglas Van Nostrand, M.D., is the Director of Nuclear Medicine at Washington Hospital Center. His specialty is nuclear medicine, and his primary area of interest and expetise is the nuclear medicine diagnosis and treatment of thyroid cancer. He has held numerous academic and medical society positions. He has published over 50 articles and has been the editor of five medical books.

Gary Bloom is a co-founder and the Board Chair of ThyCa: Thyroid Cancer Survivors' Association, Inc. Thyca is an all-volunteer, non profit organization of thyroid cancer survivors, family members, and health care professionals advised by nationally recognized leaders in the field of thyroid cancer and dedicated to education, communication and support of thyroid cancer survivors, families and friends. Gary Bloom is a thyroid cancer survivor and is involved in the association as a volunteer.

Leonard Wartofsky, M.D., is the Chair of the Department of Medicine at Washington Hospital Center. His specialty is endocrinology, and his primary area of interest and expertise is thyroid disease in general and thyroid cancer in particular, for which he is world-renowned. He has held numerous academic and medical society positions and is a past-president of the American Thyroid Association. He has published over 300 articles and is the editor of the medical textbook entitled Thyroid Cancer; A Comprehensive Guide to Clinical Management.