A World Thyroid Register has been formed to address the parlous situation of patients who are hypothyroid and have yet not been diagnosed and indeed patients who are being managed with an unacceptably low level of thyroid replacement. The situation has significantly worsened in the last one year pursuant to pronouncements in the United Kingdom from the Royal College of Physicians and the Royal College of General Practitioners who inter alia have suggested that patients should not be diagnosed with hypothyroidism if the TSH is <10.0 and moreover that Armour Thyroid is a 'bad' preparation because the proportions of T4/T3 may not reflect the human proportions while contemporaneously suggesting prescription of T4 alone; this makes no sense at all.
Everything has to date failed including petitions with large number of signatures from hypothyroid patients and other concerned parties including solicitations to various Members of Parliament in the UK and a plethora of letters to the General Medical Council who do not seem to wish to embrace this matter.
It seems to us that the only way forward is to form a World Thyroid Register with at least around 50,000 signatories. It may also be necessary if there is no final movement on this issue to consider legal redress but we sincerely hope that this will not be necessary; however, at the of the day, we cannot allow thousands of patients to be abandoned to poor quality existence because of inexplicable obduracy among the medical profession and the medical establishment.
We have therefore started a World Thyroid Register which will consist of a list of completely confidential names. I cannot emphasise strongly enough that this register will not do anything else than be a register until there is the requirement for definitive action. I am particularly concerned that the leaders of groups, for example, presently established thyroid help groups will be concerned or think that we are trying to 'take over' their names. In fact, we would not wish the names of the members of any given help group but merely an assurance which is not binding that when if required the chairperson will make appropriate contact with his/her group members. We will thus have two kinds of members namely those who have signed up to the World Thyroid Register and members via affiliated groups from established organisations.
We have to do something now.
Yours for aye,
Dr. Gordon RB Skinner
MD DSc FRCOG FRCPath
