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Vanderbilt School of Medicine Basic Sciences

Thyroid Cancer

Frontal image of human brain. 3D human anatomy visualization thyroid gland, emphasizing endocrine system disorders, thyroid cancer awareness, and hormonal health challenges in modern medical context See Less By StocksJust4You
Frontal image of human brain.

CENTERS & INSTITUTES:

The Thyroid

The thyroid is a small, butterfly-shaped gland in the front of the neck that produces hormones (primarily T3 and T4) that regulate metabolism, energy use, body temperature, heart rate, and many other bodily functions. Thyroid cancer is a common endocrine cancer, often diagnosed in younger adults (average age 51), significantly more in women, and has an excellent prognosis (over 98% 5-year survival), with slow-growing types like papillary being most prevalent and aggressive forms like anaplastic being rare.

 

Thyroid Cancer Research

Vanderbilt researchers identify key molecular driver in aggressive thyroid cancer

Vanderbilt researchers have discovered that perchlorate inhibits the uptake of iodide, an essential component of thyroid hormones

Nancy Carrasco receives award for “seminal and elegant” biophysical approaches to characterizing the sodium/iodide transporter.

Carrasco is the first to clone and characterize the sodium/iodide symporter (NIS), the key plasma membrane protein that mediates the active transport of iodide into the thyroid, the lactating breast, and other tissues.