The Christie Charity
The thyroid is a small butterfly-shaped gland inside the neck. It sits in front of the trachea (windpipe) and below the larynx (voicebox).
It uses small amounts of iodine to produce two thyroid hormones, T3 and T4. These hormones control many aspects of health, including the body’s "metabolic rate", body weight and temperature, heart rate and blood pressure, mental alertness and growth in children.
Some of the main issues the thyroid gland can cause include:
- Hypothyroidism (underactive thyroid)
- Hyperthyroidism (overactive thyroid)
- Thyroid nodules
At The Christie, thyroid cancer is treated by the clinical oncology teams.