Lorna Nickson Brown was diagnosed with thyroid cancer in 2015, after the appearance of a lump on the front of her throat.
She has decided to share her story to warn others about this little known symptom of thyroid cancer.
The actor and producer told indy100 that it was her mother who first noticed the lump.
"She thought I lost a bit of weight, but three months later I visited the GP who confirmed that it was a thyroid nodule," she said.
Although thyroid nodules can be harmless, the fact that Lorna's was so large and hard to touch, meant her doctor looked into it further.
After four months of scans, she had a biopsy and the results came back that it was cancerous.
"I felt numb. I didn’t believe it because I felt so well. At the time I was optioned for a Golden Globe-nominated TV series," Nickson Brown recalls.
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"This isn’t what I thought cancer looked like. The minute you tell people, it’s the cancer face. I didn’t feel ill."
Her oncologist decided that she would have a partial thyroidectomy, and the left side of her thyroid was removed.
Lorna posted a photo to Twitter showing the difference in her throat before the lump was removed and after her surgery.
She wrote that her brother took the first photo about year before she was diagnosed with cancer.
She wrote: "Thyroid cancer is a rare cancer and it usually presents itself as a large lump in the front of your neck."
"It is not widely known about. I didn't even know what a thyroid was until I was told I have thyroid cancer. Now I know EVERYTHING about thyroids!"
Lorna has chosen to share her story to help raise awareness of thyroid cancer.
"Please check your neck and look at others around you. most thyroid cysts are benign, but some aren't. Mine certainly wasn't. Get it checked!"
Although Lorna occasionally gets tired, having a part of her thyroid intact means she does not have to take the life-long drug Thyroxine.
And she has been in remission for over a year now.
Top Comments
But most often a thyroid nodule is exactly that; a nodule, just a cyst, non cancerous, though they can get quite big. I've just had mine removed (obviously biopsied and blood tests done) and it was simply a cyst. Not ittle-known at all. It is quite rare to be cancer in a young woman as this lady is. Hope she stays cancer-free going forward!
argh and the associated issues... I had my thyroid out 2 years ago now, the surgeon tho amazing, nicked my peri-thyroid and I've now developed calcium problems. The hairloss... the lethargy.. in my case, the now constant med changes (thyroxine) and a few other things as well!
The "parathyroid" gland controls your calcium problems & you have 4 of them. "Nicking" one should make no difference. Your thyroid replacement should also be well under control 2 years after surgery. I'd go and see your GP or get a referral to an Endocrinologist who can sort it out with a simple blood test for your TFTs (thyroid), PTH (parathormone - parathyroid) & calcium. If your parathyroid is out of whack, ask for a sestamibi scan to check them out.
I've been on Thyroxine for about two years now also, and my medication is still being changed. They have to do regular blood tests to check thyroid levels, which can go up and down. It's a fine balancing act to get the right dosage.