We're kicking things off with our story of inspiration.
Let's meet a local woman who's living life to the fullest
after beating thyroid cancer.
Deborah Cohen loves to stay busy,
both with her hobbies and her family.
- So, I love bike riding, I love watercolor painting.
I always loved coloring, drawing, doing artwork.
I love to read.
- [Jane] But several years ago,
Deborah felt her energy lagging, making it hard to keep up.
- I was very tired.
I kept getting sore throats and ear infections
that I couldn't get rid of and I was wiped out.
And it was so hard to plan anything, to do anything.
It was really sad.
It was depressing to not have the strength
to do all that I wanted.
I just couldn't figure out why I was so exhausted
and couldn't get better.
- [Jane] Concerned, Deborah sought help.
Doctors noticed a lump on her throat
and diagnosed her with thyroid cancer.
(slow piano music)
- What it means that the cells of the thyroid gland
become cancerous and they grow over time,
and that's why people with thyroid cancer usually,
not always, but usually present with a nodule
in their thyroid gland, a growth in their thyroid gland.
The key thing is to get that thyroid cancer out
so it doesn't spread.
Whatever radioactivity we're using will be effective.
- That was scary.
It was surreal.
I kinda felt like I was floating above,
watching other people.
- The treatment for thyroid cancer,
the initial treatment for thyroid cancer is surgery.
- [Jane] After surgery and radiation,
Deborah also had to go on
thyroid hormone replacement medication.
- So, people who don't have their thyroid glands
need thyroid hormone to be taken as a medication
for the rest of their lives
because the thyroid gland is essential to life.
- [Jane] But despite treatment,
Deborah still wasn't feeling like herself.
- I was almost in tears.
Everything's so off for me.
I'm feeling really off, tired from being sluggish.
I wanted to get my energy back.
- [Jane] Dr. Cohen closely monitored how Deborah was feeling
and made several adjustments to her medication
to balance out her thyroid hormone levels.
- We decide whether the dosing of thyroid hormone is correct
based on the person's symptoms, but also these blood tests,
which include both thyroid hormone levels
and the level of this pituitary hormone, TSH.
- Being able to change things in small amounts
seems to be what has helped me.
- Because it's a narrow range,
it can fairly easily go out of the range
that we're aiming for,
and that's why it's really important
if people start feeling those symptoms
to get in touch with their doctor
so we can assess what's happening.
- [Jane] Working with Dr. Cohen,
Deborah achieved her goal of getting her energy back.
(upbeat piano music)
- Yeah, I feel really good and I just have
the right amount of energy.
- She's doing great.
Things are overall going in the right direction.
Our testing has suggested
that there's been no recurrence of the thyroid cancer,
so she's doing well in that way.
- I sleep peacefully at night.
I have energy to take care of the family
and to garden, bike, paint, and do hobbies
because I was able to get my thyroid levels level,
where they should be; I'm functioning normally.
- [Jane] Deborah now hopes her story can inspire others
who may be struggling with their own thyroid hormone levels.
- Seek out the help because you can be going
from being super tired, not sleeping at night,
even though you're exhausted and barely functioning,
to having a much more fulfilling life
because you have the energy
to do the things that you wanna do.