WINCHESTER, KY- September is Thyroid Cancer Awareness Month, and a woman in recovery is sharing her story to encourage others to seek routine care.
Katelyn Dyer had never faced a serious health issue before her diagnosis.
"I've never had a single health issue in my life, so it kind of came out of nowhere," Dyer said.
Months before her diagnosis, Dyer had a new baby at home and was constantly tired. She assumed it was a normal part of new motherhood.
"I was seven months postpartum when I feel like I really started feeling the fatigue. Everyone in my life was like, well, you're a new mom, that's expected," Dyer said.
Dyer believed she was dealing with anxiety and depression, which is why she visited nurse practitioner Jessica McMaine in April 2025 at CommonSpirit Medical Group in Winchester.
McMaine noted that fatigue was Dyer's only presenting symptom.
"She didn't have any other symptoms except for literally fatigue," McMaine said.
While a radiologist recommended a follow-up in a year, McMaine recommended a stat referral for a biopsy. That decision proved critical.
"She actually had a total thyroidectomy and unfortunately she did have cancer in four of her lymph nodes," McMaine said.
Dyer said the extra labs McMaine ordered made all the difference.
"If Jessica hadn't run the extra labs it really would've never been caught," Dyer said.
Genetic testing later determined that Dyer's thyroid cancer was not a genetic form of the disease.
After a difficult few months, Dyer said her labs are back to normal.
"Jessica definitely saw me at my worst. I cried probably every day for three months, now I'm doing a lot better," Dyer said.
Now in remission, Dyer is encouraging others — including the people closest to her — to get routine checkups.
"Even my brothers who never go to the doctor went and got their thyroid checked," Dyer said.
The experience has shifted her perspective on life entirely.
"It makes you really not take for granted, good health," Dyer said.
Dyer stresses the importance of alerting your primary care provider when something feels off.
