BALTIMORE (AP) -- The growth removed from Tipper Gore's thyroid was benign,
her surgeon at Johns Hopkins Medical Center said Thursday.
Mrs. Gore, the wife of Vice President and White House aspirant Al Gore,
underwent surgery Tuesday to remove a nodule discovered on the right side of
her thyroid gland. She was released the following day.
``Mrs. Gore does not have cancer,'' Dr. Robert Udelsman said Thursday. The
operation included the removal of part of her thyroid gland. The growth was
likely a follicular adenoma of the gland, he said.
Udelsman said it is unlikely that Mrs. Gore will need thyroid hormone
replacement but her thyroid hormone levels would be monitored.
``We have no reason to suspect that this will ever come back,'' he said.
The thyroid gland, located in the neck, produces hormones that regulate the
body's metabolism. The growth was discovered after Mrs. Gore, 51, sought
treatment for an exercise-related injury. She had no symptoms of thyroid
disease.
Thyroid nodules are common, occurring in about a third of all people,
according to the American Cancer Society. As many as 95 percent of the growths
are not cancerous.
AP-NY-12-30-99 1748EST