Can You Pay For Private Blood Tests for Underactive Thyroid?

oopsadaisydoddle

Hi all,

I have recently been diagnosed with CFS/ME. This is after many years of suffering and lots of tests.

Over the years I have had numerous blood tests that have always come back negative for thyroid problems. I was speaking to an old friend and they were saying that they had been diagnosed with thyroid problems (underactive) but that it wasn't picked up on normal tests. Just wondered if anyone had any experience of this?

I was diagnosed with PCOS over 12 yrs ago and i know underactive thyroid can often go hand in hand with that.

I'm not trying to usurp the docs diagnosis of CFS/ME but thought it might be worth checking out.

Thanks in advance.x

ETA - idea where the word 'usurp' came from!! Meant dismiss!!

sophlowe45

I found this here

what is your TSH level on your blood tests?

http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/Thyroid-under-active/Pages/Introduction.aspx

I just want to tell countryLady and everyone alse that I was ill for 15 yearns before I got help and here is my advice: if you have the symptoms do not give up! Many doctors are not aware that you have underactive Thyroid even though your TSH is below 5. You need to be around 0.5 - 1 in order to feel OK. I was misdiagnosed for many years because my blood test came back with a TSH of 3.5 even though I had all the symptoms, my mother and grandmother have Thyroid disease and I had antibodies.

Tiglath

I saw a private consultant for 2 years for thyroid problems (Graves' disease and then radioactive iodine ablation). I was covered by private medical insurance but there was the option to pay privately. They might want you to have a GP's referral letter. From my invoices the actual bloodtest each time would've been £110; not sure about the consultant's fees to discuss the results. Worth ringing round the private hospitals in your area just to get a ballpark figure.

oopsadaisydoddle

sophlowe45 wrote: »

I found this here

what is your TSH level on your blood tests?

http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/Thyroid-under-active/Pages/Introduction.aspx

I just want to tell countryLady and everyone alse that I was ill for 15 yearns before I got help and here is my advice: if you have the symptoms do not give up! Many doctors are not aware that you have underactive Thyroid even though your TSH is below 5. You need to be around 0.5 - 1 in order to feel OK. I was misdiagnosed for many years because my blood test came back with a TSH of 3.5 even though I had all the symptoms, my mother and grandmother have Thyroid disease and I had antibodies.

I don't know my actual numbers..do I just ask to find out? Obviously I have the fatigue and weight gain (as you know!), the can't get warm, apart from when I'm in bed and then I sweat, yuk! I also have the mental fog.

My paternal grandma and my aunty and cousin all have been diagnosed with it. Like I said, was more just to see if it was a common thing. The friend I spoke to was a friend I went to school with who was told there was nothing wrong and eventually she found out her underactive thyroid was causing her probs!

Blackpool_Saver

Yes you can. I did. Normal GP missed and missed, when I saw an endocrine specialist I finally got treated

Tiglath

Your GP can tell you your numbers - mine prints my full blood profile out for me because I'm a geek. I have PCOS too. All the women in my female line have thyroid problems + PCOS, although I dodged the diabetes they've all got.

How old are you if you don't mind me asking? Have they ruled out the menopause?

Own_My_Own

My thyroid test results came back as 4.04 last week. The doctor said it was showing under active, but they would be doing nothing about it. I went back and saw another doctor, as I have all the symptoms, but was told they would be leaving it for another until May, when they would do another blood test.


I can offer no advice, but I can sympathise with you.

Misstress

http://tpauk.com/

oopsadaisydoddle

Tiglath wrote: »

Your GP can tell you your numbers - mine prints my full blood profile out for me because I'm a geek. I have PCOS too. All the women in my female line have thyroid problems + PCOS, although I dodged the diabetes they've all got.

How old are you if you don't mind me asking? Have they ruled out the menopause?

Yeah my aunty and cousin have PCOS too. I am just 37 so not sure it would be menopause yet...I am lucky that my PCOS has never affected my cycles - and they're still regular.

oopsadaisydoddle

Own_My_Own wrote: »

My thyroid test results came back as 4.04 last week. The doctor said it was showing under active, but they would be doing nothing about it. I went back and saw another doctor, as I have all the symptoms, but was told they would be leaving it for another until May, when they would do another blood test.


I can offer no advice, but I can sympathise with you.

Thanks for replying. I know it may not be this but it jist got me thinking when my friend mentioned it - especially as PCOS amd thyroid issues are known to go together.

Tiglath

6 months after the radioiodine, my TSH has settled at 1.42 in a normal range of 0.27 - 4.2, and I seem to be stable on 150mcg of thyroxine. My GP considers this to be normal, and I feel pretty well.