1. COMMUNICATE, EARLY, with your PROFESSORS!! Professors have heard ALL the excuses. And they are used to hearing them around the time of the deadlines. Talk with them early in the semester. Explain you have thyroid cancer, and will be going through periods of difficulty, but that you have every intention of staying responsible for covering the material.
2. ANALYZE IMPORTANCE of being in class. If you are still registering for a semester in which you'll be doing surgeries or RAI, try to take classes which do not require attendance. For example, do not take classes which shows slides, or require input from the students. Find out what your options are for making up what you miss in class. Many professors post their information on the Internet, or have copies of their lectures in the school libraries. Some schools offer services, for sale, for getting class notes.
3. KEEP THEM POSTED: Let your professors know when you about to go through things like going hypo or having a RAI treatment. Be sure they know you plan to handle it all and you plan to stay up with the work and pull your weight, but that it might be one of those times when you have to accept NOT being able to live up to your best intentions. You might never need leniency on a deadline, but if you do, the professor will be expecting you, and realizing you aren't just giving a generic excuse.
4. E-MAIL YOUR PROFESSORS and VISIT THEIR OFFICES!!! Julie spent a lot of time emailing her professors and showing up in their office to get lecture notes and personal help. In several cases she ended up doing better than the people who just go to class, because she learned to understand the professors, and they gave her lots of clues on what to study.
5. MAKE UP A SHORT "THYCA FACT SHEET": If you think your professor would be interested, you might make up a one page thyca fact sheet. You might include a URL for the thyca organization website, and/or a tentative schedule of your treatment plans, along with assurance that it's 98% curable, and that you will NOT come to class if you're still glowing. :)
Please inform me of any corrections or additions you think are needed. I will try to update and add to the list of links in the near future. I'd be happy to hear of information YOU would like to see provided.
Drop me a line!