Endocrine surgeryAdvanced treatment to get your life back

When you need treatment for an endocrine condition, the endocrine surgery program at UW Health provides advanced care and innovative surgery. You receive care from specialists in managing thyroid, parathyroid and adrenal gland conditions.

You play a key role in your treatment. You talk with your doctor about your treatment goals. Together, you choose the best care plan for you. We use minimally invasive surgical techniques, many of which were pioneered by our doctors.

Team-based thyroid clinic 

Our Madison-based thyroid clinic provides complete care for cancerous and noncancerous thyroid tumors. The team includes endocrinologists, pathologists, surgeons and nurse practitioners.

When you come to the clinic for the first time, you’ll stay for a half-day. We’ll perform an ultrasound of your thyroid gland and a fine-needle biopsy of any thyroid nodules you have. We provide immediate biopsy results. We discuss treatment options and outline a care plan. 

Better care for you through research 

We are invested in providing the best possible care. Our doctors and scientists research treatments for all types of endocrine tumors and disorders.

Learn more

To diagnose thyroid conditions, we study cells from a thyroid tumor under a microscope. We use a thin needle to collect the cells. This is called fine-needle aspiration. 

  • Adrenal nodules

  • Cushing’s syndrome

  • Hyperaldosteronism (Conn’s syndrome)

  • Pheochromocytoma

  • Appendiceal carcinoid tumors

  • Nonfunctional islet cell tumors  

  • Carcinoid tumors

  • Pancreatic polypeptide-secreting tumor

  • Colonic carcinoid tumors

  • Pulmonary carcinoid tumors

  • Gastric carcinoid tumors

  • Rectal carcinoid tumors 

  • Gastrinoma (Zollinger-Ellison syndrome)

  • Small intestinal carcinoid tumors

  • Glucagonoma

  • Somatostatinoma  

  • Insulinoma

  • Vasoactive intestinal peptide-secreting tumor



Advanced, innovative treatments

We use the most up-to-date, minimally invasive techniques for endocrine surgery. Treatments include:

  • Laparoscopic adrenalectomy

  • Minimally invasive parathyroidectomy

  • Parathyroid surgery

  • Radioguided parathyroidectomy

  • Thyroid surgery

  • Radioactive iodine

The endocrine surgery team at UW Health includes experts in endocrinology, pathology and surgery.

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    Thyroid cancer support group

    The Thyroid Cancer Survivors' Association sponsors a support group for thyroid cancer survivors, family members and friends. We share information, experiences and coping strategies.

    • Location: Wisconsin Institute of Medical Research Building, Room 5001A, 1111 Highland Ave., Madison, WI

    • Information: Contact Timothy Lau at (563) 580-3003 with any questions.

    Our patients explain how parathyroid surgery at UW Health changed their lives.

    Parathyroid surgery changed everything for Dawn. She says treatment got her life back on track. Watch Dawn’s story.

    We provide specialized endocrine surgery at UW Health clinics in Madison, Wis., and in Rockford, Ill.