Thyroid cancer: Teenagers and young adults

This section is for teens and young adults. It’s about a type of cancer called thyroid cancer.

If you’re looking for information about thyroid cancer in people of all ages, read our thyroid cancer section.

Papillary and follicular thyroid cancers are the most common types of thyroid cancer in young adults. If you’d like to find out about a different type of thyroid cancer you could talk to Macmillan Cancer Support.

It’s important to remember that thyroid cancer in young people can be successfully treated. Most young people are completely cured.

Symptoms

The first sign of thyroid cancer is usually a painless lump or swelling in the front of the neck that gradually gets bigger.

Less common symptoms are:

a hoarse voice that doesn’t get better difficulty swallowing or breathing

If you have any of these symptoms, it’s important to speak to a doctor.

Remember – these symptoms can happen for lots of reasons other than cancer.