Treatment Options and their Risks
There are three basic approaches to treatment: medicine, surgery, and radioactive iodine therapy.
Anti-thyroid Medications (Methimazole and PTU):
- You only manage the disease, not cure it.
- There can be serious and fatal side effects.
- Kidneys and liver can be damaged when used long term.
- You need to medicate your cat once to three times daily.
- The costs of rechecks and medication can cost $500-700 per year for the rest of your cat’s life. You can anticipate that the TOTAL cost of this treatment to exceed the cost of the radioactive iodine.
Surgery:
- The surgery can be difficult to perform due to location of the thyroid tumor and the fact that the vital parathyroid glands are within the thyroid tissue (for this reason, the preferred option is to remove only one gland at a time).
- When only one thyroid gland is removed, 80% will develop a tumor in the other thyroid gland within 1 ½ years.
- Cost of one surgery is $700-$1300. In 80% of cases, two surgeries will be required.
- When surgery fails, radioactive iodine is the preferred next step.
Radioactive Iodine Therapy (i-131):
- i-131 is the gold standard in treating feline hyperthyroidism.
- No anesthesia.
- 98%+ success rate.
- No lifelong daily medications.
- Does not affect normal thyroid tissue or the nearby parathyroid tissue.
- Experts agree that I-131 is the preferred method of treating hyperthyroidism in cats.
- The total cost of I-131 is less than other treatment methods.
