10: Recovering From Thyroid Cancer Surgery, Faster, Better, and Stronger

This interview is a part of the lifestyle stories featured on the Doctor Thyroid podcast, an opportunity to hear from athletes and overachievers, and how they approach their diagnosis, surgery, and recovery.

In this case, we hear from Evan Simon, Head Strength and Conditioning Coach at Oregon State University. Evan was diagnosed with advanced Stage IV thyroid cancer, which resulted a 13 hour surgery. At the end of his surgery, Evan was told he would not be able to lift his hands overhead for 3 months, instead he broke the odds, taking him only 3 weeks.

Evan shares with us, his approach to first hearing the news, how he chose to share the news with his family, including his two young daughters, and what he did to speed his recovery. Evan will offer you tips to improve better your recovery, including physical rehabilitation and having an optimistic mindset.

During the interview, we also hear from special guest, Stasi Kasianchuk, MS, RD, Sports Dietitian at Oregon State University. Staci shares her experience in treating Evan through nutrition as a means to a better recovery, and improved lifestyle post-surgery.