Gallium Scan

anliperez915

Hello everybody,
I was just wondering if anybody has had a gallium scan before. My doc has ordered this test but I don't know whats it for or why??? As I've said before he is very vague when explaining things...so I'm coming to the experts lol! thanks in advance.

Sincerely,
Liz

allmost60

Gallium scan
Hi Liz,
I found a little information that may answer a few of your questions. My doctor in the beginning didn't answer all of my questions and often left me feeling uninformed. He was "vague" also, but I finally got smart and every time he said something I didn't understand, or didn't explain something in terms I could understand, I would stop him in his tracks and start asking all of the questions that were racing through my mind. He use to get a bit irritated when I'd interrupt him, but now he always asks me if I understnad everything we have discussed. Make your doctor take the time to explain EVERYTHING he does concerning your cancer care...you are paying him to do so. I also write down my questions before each visit, that way I don't forget anything. Good luck with your test, and let us know what you find out. Here is some info on what a Gallium scan consists of and why it's done.

From Healthwise

A gallium scan is a nuclear medicine test. A nuclear medicine test uses a special camera to take pictures of specific tissues in the body after a radioactive tracer (radionuclide or radioisotope) makes them visible. Each type of tissue that may be scanned (including bones, organs, glands, and blood vessels) uses a different radioactive compound as a tracer. The radioactivity of a tracer decreases over a period of hours, days, or weeks. The tracer stays in the body until it is eliminated as waste, usually in the urine or stool (feces).

During a gallium scan, the tracer (radioactive gallium citrate) is injected into a vein in the arm. It travels through the bloodstream and into the body's tissues, primarily the bones, liver, intestine, and areas of tissue where inflammation or a buildup of white blood cells (WBCs) is present. It often takes the tracer a few days to build up in these areas, so in most cases a scan is done at 2 days and again at 3 days after the tracer is injected. Areas where the tracer builds up in higher-than-normal amounts show up as bright or "hot" spots in the pictures. The problem areas may be caused by infection, certain inflammatory diseases, or a tumor.

vinny59

scan
Hey Liz, I had this test done a year ago, it's almost like a PET scan with the injection, but you don't have to wait that hour! lol, it was ordered for me because of my bone involvement. I agree with Sue, you don't leave that doctors office until he explains the procedure and why he is ordering this test for you! That is your right as a patient. Vinny

anliperez915

vinny59 said:

scan
Hey Liz, I had this test done a year ago, it's almost like a PET scan with the injection, but you don't have to wait that hour! lol, it was ordered for me because of my bone involvement. I agree with Sue, you don't leave that doctors office until he explains the procedure and why he is ordering this test for you! That is your right as a patient. Vinny

Thank you
Thanks Sue and Vinny, for the info. My doc usually sends me out to the waiting room while they get me my next visit and all the paper work. He never tells me what he's gonna order while I'm in their with him, the doc assistant always comes out and tells me what I need to do and actually I did ask the assistant what it was for but he said he didn't know??? Makes you wonder, well I just sent my other doc an email telling her that I want a second opinion and that she needs to refer me to a new one, I currently go to Texas Tech but would like to go to Texas Oncology. Thanks again

Sincerely,
Liz

po18guy

anliperez915 said:

Thank you
Thanks Sue and Vinny, for the info. My doc usually sends me out to the waiting room while they get me my next visit and all the paper work. He never tells me what he's gonna order while I'm in their with him, the doc assistant always comes out and tells me what I need to do and actually I did ask the assistant what it was for but he said he didn't know??? Makes you wonder, well I just sent my other doc an email telling her that I want a second opinion and that she needs to refer me to a new one, I currently go to Texas Tech but would like to go to Texas Oncology. Thanks again

Sincerely,
Liz

D+ for communication skills!
Time for a little heart-to-heart with Dr. IMO. Technical expertise is fine, but Dr. must also be a good communicator, as part of being human. How on earth are you supposed to be at peace when your very life is in the hands of someone who keeps you on a need-to-know basis? I tell you that my wife would have blocked the exit door until Doc spilled the beans!

anliperez915

po18guy said:

D+ for communication skills!
Time for a little heart-to-heart with Dr. IMO. Technical expertise is fine, but Dr. must also be a good communicator, as part of being human. How on earth are you supposed to be at peace when your very life is in the hands of someone who keeps you on a need-to-know basis? I tell you that my wife would have blocked the exit door until Doc spilled the beans!

Thanks po18guy
Thanks po18guy,
Your right about the communication and need to know basis (that's exactly how he talks). I'm going to pressure my other doc to send me to a new one, she already wrote back so I'm sending her another email telling her that I need a second opinion (pronto). thanks again for responding.

Sincerely,
Liz