Your Medical Team for Thyroid Cancer Treatment at the University of Colorado Cancer Center

Institutes of Excellence-like the University of Colorado Cancer Center -are known for attracting the best and brightest doctors due to their unique research and educational opportunities. This means each doctor on your care team has superior training in his or her area of expertise. These doctors then bring their specialties together to create a patient-focused approach for each individual patient.

Each doctor on the team has a different area of expertise in thyroid cancer. Together, they combine their skills to determine and provide what’s best for you-an individual patient-based upon the type of cancer you have, how far it has spread, and even based upon your genes.

The UCCC Thyroid Cancer Program Team:

• Provides state-of-the-art care for those diagnosed with thyroid cancer
• Is recognized as a center for developing and setting new standards in the treatment of thyroid cancer
• Is recognized as a center for second opinions on all aspects of thyroid cancer care

Team Members Include:

Endocrinologist – A doctor who specializes in the body’s hormone activity. An endocrinologist will evaluate your symptoms and test results to determine if you have thyroid cancer. He or she also will manage your follow-up care.

Thyroid Surgeon – A doctor who is specially trained in surgery for thyroid problems. Surgeons in our program are highly experienced and perform more than 200 surgeries every year.

Medical Oncologist – A doctor who specializes in diagnosing and treating cancer using chemotherapy, hormonal therapy and biological therapy.

Radiation Oncologist – A doctor who treats patients with cancer using radiation therapy as the main treatment.

Pathologist – A doctor who identifies disease by studying tissues under a microscope.

Radiologist – A doctor who uses medical imaging technologies like CT scans and MRIs to diagnose and sometimes treat disease.

Ultrasonographer – A trained health professional who specializes in ultrasound radiology and views the thyroid and neck region to look for thyroid nodules and lymph nodes.

Oncology Nurse – A nurse who specializes in treating and caring for people who have cancer.

Patient Care Coordinator – A person who specializes in coordinating care and providing patient resources and  education.

Nutritionist – A trained health professional who helps patients maintain optimal nutritional intake to preserve strength and promote healing during the treatment process. The location of thyroid tumors and the discomfort from surgery and radiation in those areas may cause patients to have difficulty eating and maintaining adequate nutrition.

Social Worker – A professional trained to provide counseling and emotional support to patients and assist with practical living issues, such as:

• minimizing the effects of lost work time
• coping with disabilities
• paying medical expenses

Speech-Language Pathologist – A trained health professional who evaluates and treats thyroid cancer patients who have speech, voice and swallowing difficulties. Patients are seen before, during and after undergoing either surgery and/or chemotherapy and radiation therapy. Speech pathologists provide exercises and strategies for improving voice, speech and swallowing abilities.