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  • Anonymous
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    It sounds to me as if you need to do some reading and research before
    you agree to treatment by your present doctor because radioiodine is
    not the be-all and end-all of treatment for Graves’ disease.

    There are also drugs called antithyroid drugs (the names are methimazole
    and propylthiouracil (PTU for short)) that can cause the body to
    produce less thyroid hormone and return it to a euthyroid state, which
    means return it to a state where you have a normal amount of thyroid
    hormone in your body.

    If you are willing to take an antithyroid drug for two or more years,
    there is a 50% to 60% chance that the Graves’ disease may go into
    remission. Remission means that your body stops producing too much
    thyroid hormone. If you go into remission, you will probably need to
    have blood drawn once every six months so the doctors can make sure that
    you are still in remission (in other words, that your body is still
    producing the right amount of thyroid hormone).

    There is something else of which you should be aware. Almost everyone
    who takes the radioiodine treatment ends up hypothyroid, which means
    that the thyroid gland can no longer produce a large enough amount of
    thyroid hormone to keep you healthy. When that happens, the doctor must
    put you on a pill that replaces the correct amount of thyroid hormone
    that your body can no longer make.

    The amount of thyroid hormone that your body needs is precise; however,
    the Food and Drug Administration just came out in August and said that
    the synthetic thyroid hormones that are available are no longer
    considered to be (this is a direct quote) “safe and effective.” In
    light of the information from the FDA, I strongly suggest that you
    investigate ALL your treatment options before you agree to radioiodine,
    which is a treatment that almost always eventually kills off your body’s
    ability to make thyroid hormone, necessitating that you take the
    replacement thyroid hormone pills that I mentioned above.

    I hope this information is helpful to you in investigating what
    treatment you feel is right for you.

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