Hello Bonni. What you are asking is screening people who have a strong family history for thyroid disease. So, this applies to people who are well and have not symptoms. If that is the case (ie not symptoms) there is no evidence that screening is helpful. The full guidance can be found in: http://ww...

I already know about this unfortunate patient with anaplastic thyroid cancer through BTF and Butterfly thyroid cancer trust. We put out a request to the thyroid cancer clinicians in the UK asking if anyone is involved in any clinical trials. There are a couple but they are still in the setting up st...

The symptoms of thyroid disease are non-specific and we all experience some of them from time to time. Female hormones (oestrogens) may be linked with autoimmune thyroid disease and may explain (at least partly) why autoimmune thyroid disease is commoner in women then men. Once autoimmune thyroid di...

Unfortunately being overweight is a common problem and most overweight people do not have hypothyroidism. If you are on thyroxine it is sensible to be on the right dose and the best guide to that is the thyroid blood tests. I don't think it is the formulation of thyroid hormone that is the problem.

Dear Katie,

I am sorry to hear that you are not well and at such an important time of your life. I guess the sensible thing to do is make your GP aware that you continue to be unwell and if he/she feels there is a need for an expert opinion to get referred.

I am sorry to hear you are having problems. Here are some tips which may be helpful. 1. Each time the dose of thyroxine is adjusted allow at least 6 weeks for the new levels to stabilise, then repeat the blood tests. If a change in dose of thyroxine is required it helps to consider previous changes ...

Dear Jan, The correlation between symptoms and thyroid status (normal, under- over-active) is often poor. Although the majority of people with an overactive thyroid have most of the symptoms listed in textbooks, there are frequent exceptions. Some with severe hypothyroidism have no symptoms whatsoev...

I am sorry to hear that you are not well. Your symptoms do not suggest that you are suffering from intolerance to thyroxine. Very rarely people can develop reactions to some of the binders that are found in thyroxine tablets, but your symptoms are not suggestive of that. I hope you get better.

Unfortunately there are no magic solutions and it is down to perseverence. Key to success I think is fewer calories, more exercise and patience. Good luck

Dear Lorraine, it not easy to tell based on your description and without the benefit of examination, whether the pain you are experiencing is coming from your thyroid gland. If it is, there are a number of possible explanations. (1) thyroiditis, an inflammatory condition of the thyroid caused by vir...