Papillary thyroid cancer female patient---4 yrs out from thyroidectomy. Just had annual ultra sound for thyroid bed and lymph nodes checking for recurrence. Dr. Said there was some shadows in left lymph nodes. What could cause it? He didn t seemed concerned because my Tg dropped. I m nervous! Shadows--causes??
Shadows (echogenic shadows) of lymph nodes on ultrasound scan can be due to infections, and they can be just there normally as they are part of body immune system. There are certain features of lymph nodes on ultrasound scan which help to differentiate benign from malignant (cancer) like loss of fatty him, enlarged size and loss of normal ovoid shape. If your doctor is not worried it's probably because the lymph nodes don't have these features. Plus the falling thyroglobulin levels go against relapse. You can discuss this with your doctor.