Why can't I feel anything after half of my neck was cut off for thyroid cancer?

If a thyroid cancer patient has half of his neck cut and loses sensation, it may be due to surgical injury, lymph node metastasis, or nerve damage, and should be treated accordingly based on the different causes.

1. Surgical injury: Patients with thyroid cancer who have undergone hemisection surgery may suffer damage to local lymph nodes or nerves during the operation, resulting in loss of sensation in the neck. Generally, after a period of time after the operation, the nerves of most patients will gradually recover, and this symptom may be alleviated, and generally no special treatment is required;

2. Lymph node metastasis: If the lymph nodes in the neck are not cleaned up after surgery, there will be residual cancer cells in the body. When the cancer cells metastasize to the lymph nodes, they will irritate the lymph nodes, resulting in loss of sensation in the neck. Lymph nodes can be cleaned up surgically, and radiotherapy and chemotherapy can be used after surgery to control the spread of cancer cells.

3. Nerve damage: During thyroid cancer surgery, the recurrent laryngeal nerve or cutaneous nerve may be damaged, resulting in loss of sensation in the neck area. If the damage is not serious and only local numbness occurs, special treatment is generally not required. However, if the damage is more serious and large-area numbness occurs, surgery can be performed to repair it, which can generally improve symptoms;

4. Other reasons: After thyroid cancer surgery, some patients may still experience elevated thyroglobulin, which is a sign of thyroid cancer recurrence. At this time, another thyroidectomy is required, and chemotherapy, radiotherapy, etc. are also needed to control the disease.

After thyroid cancer surgery, patients are advised to have regular checkups to facilitate early detection and treatment. At the same time, they should maintain a good attitude, pay attention to rest, and avoid staying up late and overwork.