How many days does it take for the incision to heal after thyroid cancer surgery

The recovery time of the incision after thyroid cancer surgery needs to be determined based on factors such as the pathological type of thyroid cancer, surgical method, patient's age, nutritional status, etc., and cannot be generalized.

1. Pathological type: Thyroid cancer can be divided into papillary thyroid cancer, follicular thyroid cancer, medullary thyroid cancer and anaplastic thyroid cancer. Generally, papillary thyroid cancer is less malignant and recovers quickly after surgical resection, which may take about 1 month. Follicular thyroid cancer and medullary thyroid cancer are more malignant and recover more slowly after surgical resection, which may take about 2 months. Anaplastic thyroid cancer is more malignant and develops rapidly, and it may take about 3 months to recover after surgical resection;

2. Surgical methods: There are many surgical methods for thyroid cancer, including total thyroidectomy, subtotal thyroidectomy, unilateral thyroidectomy, thyroid lobectomy, etc. Different surgical methods have different effects on the incision. Generally, the incision of total thyroidectomy can heal in 3-5 days, while the incision of unilateral thyroidectomy and thyroid lobectomy may take 5-7 days to heal;

3. The age of the patient: If the patient is older, has a faster metabolism, and has a stronger skin healing ability, the surgical wound will recover faster. If the patient is younger, has a slower metabolism, the surgical wound will recover more slowly.

4. Nutritional status: If the patient pays more attention to diet and nutritional supplements before and after the operation, and his nutritional status is relatively good, the surgical wound will recover faster. If the patient's nutritional status is poor and malnutrition occurs, the surgical wound recovery time will be relatively slow.

After surgery, patients also need to keep warm, avoid catching cold, keep a good mood, avoid staying up late, and avoid fatigue. In addition, they also need to pay attention to regular color Doppler ultrasound examinations to determine whether there is tumor recurrence.