What Causes Pain In Ribcage After Receiving Dose Of Radioactive Iodine?

Posted on Thu, 5 Feb 2015

Medically reviewed by Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team

Thu, 5 Feb 2015 Answered on

Thu, 5 Mar 2015 Last reviewed on

Question : after a dec 2014 dose of radioactive iodine for follicular thyroid cancer metastisis at lumbar 4, I developed pain in my right front side at rib cage (underneath right breas) and also on same level on the right side of my body. it is intermittent, but occurs quite often. advil, es tylenol and naproxen does not help the pain. a recent urine culture was inconclusive. a recent abdominal ultrasound was fine. any idea what may be causing my pain?

Answered by Dr. Dr Samir Patil (2 hours later)

Brief Answer:
need PET or Bone scan

Detailed Answer:
Hello,
I would advise to rule out metastasis to the ribs.
I would suggest that you get a bone scan or a PET scan to check for rib metastasis.

In case the above tests are normal I would suggest to get vitamin D and calcium levels done as vitamin D deficiency can cause similar pain.

As the pain is not relieved by naproxen or Tylenol I would suggest tramadol to help with the pain.
Please consult your doctor for a prescription and for further investigations

Hope this helps
Do get back in case you have further queries

Regards
Dr Samir Patil

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Shanthi.E