The most important step before undergoing thyroid surgery is to be certain that the planned surgery is appropriate for the diagnosis. In order to properly treat the disease, sometimes a partial or total thyroidectomy is necessary and in some patients lymph nodes also need to be removed during the surgery.

To determine the proper surgery, physicians may order blood tests and radiology studies, including an ultrasound or CT scan. Also, some patients may be asked to see their primary care doctor to make sure that their overall health is good enough to have surgery.