[dwooden]

#1018159

I am new here and just at the very beginning of treatment. The same Family doctor appointment that confirmed my suspicion of Graves’ also returned a frightening abnormal pap test in the "high grade" classification, all beggining on Monday last week and by Thursday I was seeing an endocrinologist and Friday the pap result. Needless to say i am super scared. Scheduled for a thyroid scan and uptake test on Tuesday. My Doc has informed me of the 3 available treatments and says if it were him he’d go with RAI. I tend to agree but have heard a few people say that with surgery and RAI they have continued to suffer for years of various symptoms of fatigue and sickness. I am so confused because my Endo said a few months after the RAI my life would be back to normal. Is this just a best case thing? or can i expect to live a healthy life? Also interested if anyone has heard of graves’ causing abnormalities on gynecology tests? And what can i expect from now thru the rest of this process?

[Kimberly]

#1063025

Hello – I’m really sorry to hear that you’ve had so much bad news on the medical front. ” title=”Sad” />

All three treatment options for Graves’ (Anti-Thyroid Drugs, Surgery, RAI) have pros and cons, so you will definitely want to do your own research as well as consult with a doctor before making a final decision. You might start by doing a search on this site for “Thyroidectomy”, “RAI” and “Anti-Thyroid Drugs” to see what experiences others have had with each of the treatment options. Obviously, all patients are unique, so you won’t necessarily have the same experience as someone who had great results – or poor results – from a particular treatment option. But the best thing you can do is research all of your options and make an informed decision.

To my knowledge, there isn’t a correlation between Graves’ Disease and an abnormal pap test, but perhaps you will hear from others who have had a similar experience.

Please check back and let us know how you are doing. And feel free to stop by just to vent if you need to…you certainly have a lot to deal with right now!

[snelsen]

#1063026

Hi, I am glad you found us!
You have had quite a week! Here’s my thinking…

With the PAP, it might be worth asking for a repeat. If the results are the same, I suggest you go to a gynecologist for further follow-up. There are some simple procedures to further clarify what you are dealing with, and what, if anything, needs to be done next. I think it is completely unrelated to Graves’, but you will Your primary care doc has found two conditions, and both probably are appropriately referred to an endo and a gyn doc.

With Graves’, you have plenty of time to decide on how you want to manage your Graves’ long term. That said, you are NOT him, ( your doc,) and I would be happier if he had told you about the three options without pushing you in any direction. I am assuming that your family doc has given you this info, and you are seeing the endo next week??
As Kimberly, said, everyone on this site, past, present and future, has decided on one of the three options, for their own reasons. So follow her, use the search engine, and begin to learn about them. YOu will find that the people who had surgery, chose it for their own reasons, which may include that they did not want the other two options for one reason or another. And I could say the same thing about the other two options. I chose surgery. Recently, someone chose I-131.

But I think you will find that after you see the endo, and you do indeed have Graves’, if you have the hyper symptoms of Graves’ -racing pulse, tremor when you hold your hands out, anxious, increased appetite, heat intolerance…that the endo will probably begin by prescribing an anti-thyroid drug to get less thyroid hormone racing through your body. And most likely, a beta blocker to control your heart rate. That is how we all begin!!! And that is the first order of things.

So tomorrow, you will have more info, learn some more.
Write again.
Helpful thoughts for your appointment.
1. Sign a medical release of information form at the front desk, as to have copies of labs, tests and visits sent to you for your own file. This is true of any doctor, any time.
2. If your endo talks about lab tests he/she will want in the future. ask how you can get them ahead of any visit, so you have results to discuss during your appointment.
Shirley

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