I received a diagnosis of papillary thyroid cancer, so I had a tumor in my thyroid that had to be removed. I got an ultrasound in June with a physician outside of UCLA and was only notified of my need for a biopsy 3 weeks after. I immediately got a biopsy and the results came in 2 days after indicating the need for surgery. The entire process was pretty last minute, as I'm leaving for school in a few days. For the surgery, I visited Dr. Lihvits and she was very accommodating with my schedule, making sure that I got the care that I needed done before heading off to school. Overall my experience was pretty good - the worst part was spending the night at the hospital following the surgery, but the pain is getting progressively better. Immediately after the surgery the main complaint I had was stiffness in the neck and trouble swallowing, but after 2-3 days I was able to drive again and was able to eat normal solid foods a few days after.

Being a student about to go across the country for college, I would advise anyone else having to go through a similar procedure to time things out (such as surgery, post surgery appointments and procedures) in a method that fits with your other commitments.

Tags: biopsy, Dr. Masha Lihvits, Endocrine, Endocrine Center, Endocrine Surgery, endocrinologist, Endocrinology, endocrinology, papillary thyroid cancer, patient stories, post surgery appointments, procedures, solid foods, surgery, trouble swallowing, ucla endocrine cetner, ultrasound