Campaign for Thyroid Transplants

We believe that thyroid transplants are necessary, possible and feasible.


We want to work towards improved quality of life for thyroid-less patients who may suffer from health problems including chronic fatigue, depression and joint problems.


By coming together we make sure that we are not isolated or ignored, that we can have an impact on our care, and the medical profession can be helped to understand our needs.


We've done quite a bit  research on the subject of thyroid transplants - about the possibility of a thyroid transplant and about the difficulties of living without a thryoid. You can find that here.


We recently found groundbreaking news of a transplanted thyroid gland being used as part of a voice box transplant. We  are encouraged that the medical authorities are willing to transplant voice boxes in this way to help people regain their speech, for “better quality of life” rather than for life-saving reasons.


There is also the very exciting news that research into voicebox and thyroid transplants using stem cells will begin in 2013. In theory a thyroid transplant should be much less complex and using stem cells would mean that there would be less need for immunosupressant drugs.

However at the moment it seems there are no plans to develop thyroid transplants for actual thyroid-less patients, despite numerous accounts of patient suffering.The current treatment for those without a thyroid is to prescribe the artificial hormone drug thyroxine.


Factory made synthetic medication cannot replicate the actions of a normal thyroid gland. A thyroid gland produces hormones in response to the body’s needs – a drug can keep thyroid levels constant but does not allow them to fluctuate in this natural way.

Thyroxine keeps thyroid-less  patients alive but some remain in poor health. We've read patients’ stories of suffering ill health after a thyroidectomy and it seems that a thyroidectomy can come with side effects such as:

• chronic fatigue
• depression
• anxiety
• memory loss
• mood swings
• weight gain or loss
• joint pain
• arthritic conditions
• loss of bone density
• breathing difficulties

There's more information about a survey into the health problems suffered by people who have had their thyroid removed here.


There appears to be a contradiction at present between what the medical establishment believes about thyroidectomy and what patients say their experience is.

There is a large body of anecdotal evidence to be found on the internet. We particularly like this piece in Dear Thyroid by a patient who is also passionate about thyroid transplants.

How can this organisation help?

1. It will make the media and medical establishment more aware of the problems of thyroidless  patients.
2. It will also provide a connection to those many specialists who listen and have the patient’s interest truly at heart and help them  make positive changes for thyroid care in the future.
3. It will advocate for research into thyroid transplants. 

We can only do this with the support of readers who suffer with thyroid problems or want thyroid care to move forward. If you  feel the same as us, if you want to be heard and want thyroid care to move forward into the twenty-first century where it belongs, please help us by volunteering, by filling out survey, or by leaving comments on the site. We're also working on a petition.