Followup tests

Stojsik
Stojsik Member Posts: 1
edited March 2014 in Kidney Cancer #1
What followup was ordered after the initial removal of the kidney for cancer? Has anyone had a P.E.T. scan? I think that is what it is called. I have had breast cancer and kidney cancer within the last year and a half. I just had my kidney out in February 2005.

Comments

  • AuthorUnknown
    AuthorUnknown Member Posts: 1,537 Member
    #2
    My Mom had her kidney out 5 yrs. ago. Now has mets to the lungs, bone and other adrenal gland. Has CAT scans at least every 3 months. Has not had a P.E.T. Scan ever.
  • Chicago
    Chicago Member Posts: 73 Member
    #3
    Hey Sto,

    Very likely, you should be having 6-month follow-up CT/CAT scans, and sometimes ultrasounds, for the first two years. After two years, they usually go to once a year scans. I would guess that, since you had your kidney out in Feb, you should be getting a contrast scan in August.
  • JoBubba
    JoBubba Member Posts: 8
    #4
    My husband has had CT scans every 3 months since diagnosis 2 years ago with advanced cancer with lung and bone involvement. He also has had one or two PET scans. He does scans without contrast as recommended by his urologist, unless the docs really need the contrast. He has had so many tests it is hard to keep it all straight.
  • urkabsd
    urkabsd Member Posts: 37
    #5
    i also had my kidney removed in march. there is no one in my area that i have been able to talk to that has survived this type of cancer. i had been doing well but about a month ago i started having more pain and had a cat scan done and the doctor said that there was inflammation in the stomach area, diverticulitis but that my adrenal gland was also enlarged. of course, it being a holiday i didn't get to talk to anyone much and my doctor will be on vacation for 2 weeks. i am trying hard to keep the good faith, pray and be positive but it is so difficult! they found my kidney tumor quite by accident which is usually the case. i have not felt up to working full time and i guess that is one of the things getting me down. i feel that i should have been able to go back to work by now. it has been since march 1 of this year. i have not had a pet scan, i asked and the doctor checked, my insurance will not pay for it, it costs 3500 here and we jsut don't have the money. several people i know have had a false negalative pet scan and that worried me also. my blood work is all normal but it was a month before they found my cancer also. they had also found 2 very small nodules in my lungs but they have cat scanned them twice and they have not grown any at all and they say not to worry about them, they will continue with the mri/cat scan every 3 months and then 6 months. has anyone experience pain and neuropathy after kidney removal out there. please let me here from you!
  • Unknown
    Unknown
    #6
    A PET scan is not too good in finding nodules of cancer that are less than one centimeter in diameter. A CT scan of chest, abdomen and pelvis should be done periodically, depending on your particular situation (size of original tumor, cancer type, tumor grade). Your can talk to others with kidney cancer by joining an email support list at http://cancerguide.org/kofaq/ .
  • Unknown
    Unknown
    #7
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