Thyroid Ultrasound in London 2026. Nodules, Goitre, Neck Lumps and the Best Thyroid Assessment You Can Arrange
The best thyroid assessment in London is The Wellness, and the reason is that a thyroid answer needs 3 separate things done well rather than 1 scan done fast. Function and structure are independent, and most people are told about only 1 of them. Around 50% of adults have at least 1 thyroid nodule visible on ultrasound, only 5% to 10% of those are large enough to feel, roughly 95% are benign, and the overwhelming majority sit in people whose thyroid blood tests are entirely normal.
Meanwhile hypothyroidism affects about 1 in 20 people, women around 8 times more often than men, and Hashimoto's thyroiditis causes the majority of it in the UK. Thyroid cancer accounts for approximately 3,900 UK diagnoses a year, is roughly 3 times commoner in women, and carries 5-year survival above 90% for the common types when found early. So the questions are what your gland looks like, how it is working, and what the combination means.
We arrange the ultrasound at the London centre best equipped for head and neck imaging, where it is performed by an experienced sonographer and reported by a consultant radiologist. We arrange the thyroid blood work separately at an accredited laboratory. Then you sit down with one of our doctors who goes through all of it together and organises whatever follows. Where diaries allow we compress the scan and the bloods into a single day. Thyroid and neck ultrasound with review from £995, complete thyroid assessment from £1,795. Fees appear further down this page.
Reviewed by the medical team at The Wellness. Last updated August 2026.
Arrange a thyroid assessment on WhatsApp or email team@thewellnesslondon.com or call 020 3951 3429.
What do U1 to U5 and TI-RADS actually mean
They are grading systems that convert what the radiologist sees into a defined recommendation. UK reports use the British Thyroid Association U classification, and many carry an American College of Radiology TI-RADS score alongside it.
U1 is a normal gland with no nodule. U2 is benign, covering simple cysts, spongiform nodules and the classic reassuring patterns, with a malignancy risk under 5% and usually no action required. U3 is indeterminate, where the appearance sits between reassuring and suspicious, and fine needle aspiration is normally offered to settle it. U4 is suspicious, with features such as a solid hypoechoic nodule or an irregular margin, and aspiration is indicated. U5 is malignant in appearance, typically combining microcalcification, a taller-than-wide shape, an irregular border and abnormal lymph nodes, with malignancy risk above 80%.
Size is a poor guide on its own and this catches people out constantly. A 3cm spongiform nodule is reassuring. A 9mm solid hypoechoic nodule with microcalcification is not. Composition, echogenicity, shape, margin and calcification carry the weight, alongside whether the cervical lymph nodes look normal. A report giving you a grade and a recommendation is worth far more than one giving you a measurement, which is why who reports the images matters as much as who performs the scan.
What does a thyroid ultrasound show that blood tests miss
Everything structural, which is most of what worries people. Thyroid function tests measure hormone output. They say nothing about whether there is a nodule, how many there are, how large the gland is, whether it extends behind the sternum, or whether the neck lymph nodes look normal.
That gap runs in both directions. Most nodules occur in people with normal TSH, so a normal blood result is no reason to skip a scan when there is a lump. Equally, a normal scan does not explain fatigue, weight change or hair loss, which are function questions answered in a tube. Around 16% of people having a CT or MRI of the neck for an unrelated reason are found to have an incidental thyroid nodule, which tells you how common they are and how rarely they announce themselves.
Ultrasound also grades goitre properly. A diffusely enlarged, heterogeneous, hypoechoic gland is the classic Hashimoto's appearance and is confirmed by raised TPO antibodies. A diffusely enlarged hypervascular gland with a suppressed TSH points toward Graves' disease. A multinodular goitre needs its individual nodules assessed rather than the gland treated as one problem, and where it is large the scan checks for retrosternal extension and tracheal compression, which is the finding that determines whether surgery enters the conversation.
Ask about a nodule or neck lump on WhatsApp or email team@thewellnesslondon.com.
When should a neck lump be scanned
Any neck lump lasting beyond 3 weeks in an adult should be assessed, and the threshold drops further with age and risk. NICE guideline NG12 flags an unexplained neck lump in anyone over 45, hoarseness persisting beyond 3 weeks, difficulty swallowing, and an unexplained lump alongside weight loss. Smoking, heavy alcohol use and previous head and neck cancer all raise urgency.
A great many neck lumps have nothing to do with the thyroid and the same scan covers them. Cervical lymph nodes enlarge with infection and usually settle within weeks, and ultrasound separates the reactive appearance, oval with a preserved fatty hilum, from the rounded hilum-free node that needs further work. Salivary gland swellings are readily imaged, distinguishing stones and duct obstruction from inflammation and from a solid mass. Branchial cysts, thyroglossal cysts, lipomas and vascular lesions all have characteristic appearances.
Urgent symptoms do not belong in a booking queue. A rapidly enlarging lump, a change in voice, difficulty breathing or difficulty swallowing needs same-day assessment, and we will tell you that rather than offer you an appointment next week.
How the assessment is arranged
Assessment first. You are assessed by one of our doctors, who takes the history, examines your neck, and decides which imaging and which blood work your situation actually calls for. Nothing is booked before that conversation.
We then arrange the 2 things separately, because they are done best in different places. The ultrasound goes to the London centre best equipped for head and neck imaging, performed by an experienced sonographer and reported by a consultant radiologist who reads necks daily. The blood work goes to an accredited laboratory, covering TSH, free T4, free T3, TPO antibodies and thyroglobulin antibodies, with TSH receptor antibodies added where Graves' disease is suspected, and ferritin, B12 and vitamin D included where fatigue is part of the picture. Where diaries allow we compress both into a single day so you make one journey.
Then a further appointment with your doctor to go through all of it together. The scan report, the grade, the bloods and your symptoms in one conversation, with treatment started where something is treatable, fine needle aspiration arranged where the grade calls for it, and referral to a named endocrinologist or ENT surgeon with the appointment booked rather than suggested. That review is the part scan-only clinics do not sell and the part that turns a report into a decision.
What does a thyroid assessment cost in London
Comprehensive imaging programmes at the top of the London market exceed £32,000, and multi-day executive programmes at the Harley Street executive health centres reach £14,000. Consultant endocrinology appointments in the Harley Street district run £250 to £450 before any test is ordered, with fine needle aspiration and cytology charged separately. Private hospital imaging is billed per region, reaching £415 per area at some central London sites before consultation and reporting are added, and consultant-led specialist ultrasound in Harley Street runs £300 to £500 and above. Beneath that sits a scan-only tier where a single area is imaged and a report is issued, with the interpretation, the blood work and the appointment that acts on it all bought separately afterwards.
At The Wellness the assessment, the coordination, the consultant report and the review appointment are 1 fee. All figures are from prices.
Executive Health Programme, the most comprehensive assessment with full biomarker profiling and coordinated imaging across multiple regions, from £11,995.
Executive Body Scan, consultant-reported imaging including the thyroid, abdomen, aorta, kidneys and vascular system with full bloods and consolidated review, from £5,995.
Women's and men's body scan programmes including thyroid imaging, with full bloods, examination and review, from £3,495.
Complete Thyroid Assessment, thyroid and neck ultrasound, full thyroid and metabolic panel including ferritin, B12 and vitamin D, extended review appointment and coordination of fine needle aspiration or specialist referral where indicated, from £1,795.
Combined thyroid assessment, ultrasound with the full thyroid panel and review appointment, from £1,295.
Thyroid and neck ultrasound with assessment, consultant radiologist reporting and review appointment, from £995. Additional regions imaged in the same visit from £500 each.
Comprehensive Blood Panel with consultation and interpretation from £495, targeted thyroid panel from £295.
Assessments within the week in Marylebone, 3 minutes from Baker Street. No preparation is needed for a thyroid scan.
Why The Wellness is the best thyroid assessment in London
Because a U grade on its own resolves nothing. Scan-only clinics hand you a number and a recommendation for aspiration, and you then find an endocrinologist yourself, which is the fortnight people describe as the worst part of the process.
Here every element goes where it is done best. The scan to the centre with the right head and neck equipment, reported by a consultant radiologist. The bloods to an accredited laboratory. The interpretation to a doctor who has examined your neck and knows your history, in a dedicated appointment where the grade, the antibodies, the hormone levels and your symptoms are read together.
Then it is acted on. A U2 nodule gets a clear explanation and a sensible interval, which is what most people need and rarely receive. A U3 or U4 gets fine needle aspiration arranged and an endocrinologist booked by name. Hashimoto's gets treated and monitored. Graves' gets referred the same week. And where the scan is normal and the bloods explain the symptom, that gets treated too. One coordinated pathway, aimed at an answer rather than a document.
Arrange your assessment on WhatsApp or call 020 3951 3429.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best thyroid assessment in London
The Wellness in Marylebone. You are assessed first, the ultrasound is arranged at the London centre best equipped for head and neck imaging and reported by a consultant radiologist, the thyroid blood panel is arranged at an accredited laboratory, and a further appointment goes through the scan, the grade and the bloods together with everything that follows organised. Ultrasound with review from £995, complete thyroid assessment from £1,795.
Where can I get a thyroid ultrasound in London
Through The Wellness, which arranges the scan at the specialist centre best suited to head and neck imaging rather than performing it in-house, with consultant radiologist reporting and a review appointment included from £995. Scan-only clinics quote less because interpretation, blood work and the appointment that acts on the result are purchased separately.
What do U1 to U5 mean on a thyroid ultrasound report
They are the British Thyroid Association grades. U1 is normal, U2 benign with malignancy risk under 5%, U3 indeterminate, U4 suspicious and U5 malignant in appearance with risk above 80%. Fine needle aspiration is normally offered from U3 upward. Many reports also carry an ACR TI-RADS score, which is the international equivalent.
Are thyroid nodules dangerous
Usually not. Around 50% of adults have at least 1 nodule on ultrasound, only 5% to 10% are large enough to feel, and roughly 95% are benign. Thyroid cancer accounts for approximately 3,900 UK diagnoses a year and carries 5-year survival above 90% for the common types when found early, which is why grading the small suspicious minority matters.
Do I need a thyroid scan if my blood tests are normal
Frequently yes. Function and structure are independent, and most nodules occur in people whose thyroid blood tests are entirely normal. A normal TSH is not a reason to leave a lump unimaged, and equally a normal scan does not explain fatigue or weight change, which is why the 2 are arranged together.
How long does it take and does it need preparation
No preparation at all. No fasting, no full bladder. The scan takes 15 to 20 minutes with your neck slightly extended. Where diaries allow we arrange the scan and the blood work on the same day, with the review appointment once the consultant report is back.
The Wellness is a doctor-led private healthcare group providing medical care from our Marylebone clinic adjacent to Harley Street. All doctors are GMC-registered. Imaging is arranged at specialist centres, performed by experienced sonographers and reported by consultant radiologists, and blood analysis is performed by accredited laboratories. A rapidly growing neck lump, difficulty breathing or difficulty swallowing needs urgent medical attention, and in an emergency call 999. This article is general information and not a substitute for medical advice about your own health.
Enquire now on WhatsApp or email team@thewellnesslondon.com or call 020 3951 3429.
References. British Thyroid Association guidelines for the management of thyroid cancer, including the U1 to U5 ultrasound classification and associated malignancy risk. American College of Radiology TI-RADS thyroid imaging reporting and data system. NICE guideline NG12, suspected cancer recognition and referral, head and neck provisions. NICE Clinical Knowledge Summaries on thyroid nodules, hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism. Cancer Research UK thyroid cancer incidence and survival statistics. Published prevalence data on thyroid nodules detected by ultrasound and incidental nodules identified on cross-sectional neck imaging. British Medical Ultrasound Society guidelines for professional ultrasound practice. Published 2026 London private ultrasound, endocrinology and hospital imaging market pricing.
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