Around one is 20 people in the UK can be affected by thyroid cancer. But it can also take years for it to be diagnosed because of the symptoms overlapping with a range of other conditions.
A new study by academics at the University of Aberdeen in collaboration with several leading thyroid charities found that it takes an average of 4.5 years for a thyroid condition to be diagnosed, reports The Mirror. The study, which looked at the experience of almost 1,200 patients, found that in almost two thirds of cases it took multiple appointments and a worsening of the severity of symptoms before a diagnosis was made.
The thyroid is a small, butterfly-shaped gland in the neck, just in front of the windpipe (trachea). It produces hormones that affect things such as your heart rate and body temperature - one of its main functions is to produce hormones that help regulate the body's metabolism, the process that turns food into energy.
