If you have either papillary or follicular thyroid cancer and have had the thyroid gland removed, you are likely to have further scans of the neck and body using radioactive iodine.

Whole-body radioisotope scanning is similar to the thyroid radioisotope scans that are used to diagnose thyroid cancer. The scans are done to see if there are any thyroid cancer cells left in the neck, or other parts of the body, after the operation.

If cancer cells are seen on the scan, you can be treated with stronger doses of radioactive iodine to destroy the cells. This is described in more detail in the section on internal radiotherapy. It may be possible to have a second operation to remove the cancer cells: for example if they are in a lymph node.

Whole-body radioisotope scanning is not possible if you still have some healthy thyroid gland left, as the healthy thyroid tissue would absorb all of the radioactive iodine.