Prostate cancer patient Kenneth Bruce’s shocking goitre find

A regional Queensland retiree diagnosed with prostate cancer was in for a nasty shock when a follow up scan revealed an entirely new health concern.

Retired carpenter Kenneth Bruce, 74, was told the mass was an enlarged thyroid gland – known as a goitre – and had been growing for more than a decade.

As if a prostate cancer diagnosis wasn’t enough, a retired Hervey carpenter was shocked to find out he also had a growth the size of a large orange in his neck.

Hervey Bay’s Kenneth Bruce, 74, was told the mass was an enlarged thyroid gland, also known as a goitre, and had been growing for more than a decade, , a media release from the hospital said.

“My previous thyroid function blood tests had been normal so this news came as a shock and surprise to me,” Mr Bruce said.

“Because the goitre had grown down towards my chest, it wasn’t obvious and I hadn’t noticed any side effects.”

Because of the size of the mass and the risk it could be cancerous he was referred to leading endocrine surgeon Sally Meade at Mater Private Hospital Brisbane before his prostate cancer treatment began, the release said.

Mr Bruce was told he would need surgery and a week later Mr Bruce arrived in Brisbane to have half his thyroid gland removed.

Retired carpenter Kenneth Bruce, 74, was told the mass was an enlarged thyroid gland known as a goitre and had been growing for more than a decade.

Surgery involved making an incision about 4cm to 6cm in the centre of the neck.

The thyroid gland was then removed through the incision.

Dr Meade said if left undetected or untreated, the goitre could have severely affected Mr Bruce’s breathing.

“Ken’s goitre was the size of a big orange, about 7cm, and was especially large on the left side, extending into his chest and compressing his airway,” Dr Meade said in the release.

“The remainder of Ken’s thyroid should continue to function normally without the requirement for thyroid hormone replacement.”

Mr Bruce was discharged from hospital just one day after the surgery.

Further tests revealed the goitre was not cancerous, the release said.

Mr Bruce’s targeted radiation treatment for prostate cancer is set to begin in a few weeks.

Retired carpenter Kenneth Bruce, 74, was told the mass was an enlarged thyroid gland known as a goitre and had been growing for more than a decade.

Dr Meade said most thyroid conditions can be identified via video conference because it is possible to see a patient’s neck.

“Most of the information pertaining to surgical work up of the thyroid or parathyroid is gained from imaging, biochemistry (blood tests).

Goitres affect less than four per cent of Australians.

Mr Bruce’s goitre was caused by a nodule – or lump – in his thyroid gland.

Goitres can also be caused by thyroid cancer, a lack of iodine, an inflamed thyroid gland, auto-immune diseases or hormone changes in puberty, pregnancy and menopause, the Mater release said.

Dr Meade, who has performed thyroid surgery on Queenslanders for more than 20 years, said there new developments in the diagnosis of thyroid nodules allowed health experts to better plan surgery, or avoid it entirely in some cases.

Aa test called ThyroSeq v3, which involves using cells collected from a thyroid nodule to analyse DNA to help diagnose if the nodule is cancerous, is also recommended, she said.

“If it comes back showing no mutations, then patients can potentially avoid surgery if there is no other indication,” Dr Meade said.

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