When patients are told that they have thyroid cancer, the question most patients ask is “Why do you have it? Can it be cured? What do I need to pay attention to?” Since it is usually difficult to explain in a few words, we are writing this article to briefly answer the risk factors for thyroid development. All information is obtained from the academic literature, and since there may be some differences between different literature reports, if you have any questions about the information in this article, please ask and provide references for further discussion. First of all, the exact mechanism of thyroid cancer pathogenesis, like other malignancies, is unclear, so “why do you get thyroid?” There is no standard answer to this question, but through epidemiological methods, it is possible to find risk factors for thyroid cancer development, and in our daily life, we can try to avoid these risk factors to prevent the occurrence of tumors. The main risk factors for thyroid are as follows: 1. Radiation exposure and exposure to radiation The atomic bombings in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and the leakage from the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in the Soviet Union led to a significant increase in the incidence of thyroid cancer there. Increased medical radiation exposure has been reported in the literature to be consistent with an increased incidence of thyroid cancer, especially in childhood. Therefore, it is important to minimize radioactive examinations, especially in children, and it is best to use a lead scarf to protect the neck from radiation when it must be done. 2. Iodine intake Iodine is one of the necessary raw materials for the synthesis of thyroid hormones in humans. Abnormal iodine intake has long been considered as one of the important risk factors for the development of thyroid cancer. However, there is no unanimous understanding yet. It has been reported that iodine deficiency increases the risk of follicular thyroid cancer, while high iodine intake increases the risk of papillary thyroid cancer. However, the problem is that the line between appropriate iodine intake and high iodine intake is not very clear. It has been reported that moderate differences in iodine intake in daily life do not affect the incidence of thyroid cancer. Therefore it is difficult to answer the question of how to take in iodine, maybe it is appropriate. 3. Genetics and heredity The occurrence of any disease will eventually look for genetic evidence, and thyroid cancer is no exception. Please note that there is a correlation. 4. Gender There is no doubt that women are more likely to develop thyroid cancer, but men have a worse prognosis than women. The reason? It is not clear. 5. Thyroid status Many scholars believe that Hashimoto’s thyroiditis can cause an increased incidence of thyroid cancer. However, there are reports that Hashimoto’s thyroiditis is not associated with the development of thyroid cancer. In addition, benign thyroid disorders such as nodular goiter and thyroid adenoma are risk factors for thyroid cancer. Therefore, patients suffering from Hashimoto’s thyroiditis and benign thyroid diseases should be reviewed regularly to be alert for the development of thyroid cancer. 6.Other Obesity, family history, and serum thyroid stimulating hormone level are also potential risk factors for thyroid cancer.