Does your colon tumour show in the CT scan?

CT's aren't totally reliable for spotting tumors, as they show structure and shape, only to a degree, and small, flat or hidden things can get missed. They followed my CT's with PET scans to look for sugar uptake, a sign of cancer cell activity, then did needle biopsies on my liver to confirm. One time the biopsy came back negative and the onc still said it needs to come out. I guess sometimes "if it walks and quacks like a duck...", you don't wait untill it lays an egg....................................................Dave

never showed on the CT scans.   It was at 22cm.

Mine was initially found via colonoscopy.  A CT was ordered and done the next day to check for any mets.  The scan images and the radiological reports found the tumor in my descending colon along with being pretty dead accurate on the overall size being 3cm.  Now what probably helped was my colon being pretty empty due to having done the colon blow for the colonoscopy.  Depending on the tumor, it can be obscured by the fecal matter in your colon.  Or as indicated by others, the tumor could be flat instead of pendulated.  But usually the radiologist can see thickening of the colon wall which was also part of the radiological comments tied to the narrative about the tumor.

I did have a recent CT scan where the radiologist noted he could not get a clear view of certain sections of my colon because of matter in my colon.  Sometimes, I wonder if some minor fasting should be required prep for abdominal CTs.

Mine was rectal cancer and the CT scan didn't really show it.  My radiologist was trying to find it on the scan but was very hesitant to find it and said "I think this is the area" so no, it doesn't always show up on a scan.  The only positive proof is a colonoscopy.  Mine was about the size of a nickle and down low in the rectum but if looking at the scan they probably wouldn't have seen it.  They could feel it with a digital exam but really couldn't determine it from a scan.

Kim

They screwed the pooch during my CT scan prior to diagnosis. They couldn't see it because the contrast couldn't get past the tumor. They just let that slide three times.

My last recurrence was caught on a PET/CT scan, where it lit up like a Christmas tree. If the tumor's big enough, they can see it on a CT scan, but they can't definitively diagnosis it that way. PET scans are pretty reliable, especially if they continually light up and grow in size, like mine did. Yours might be too small for the radiologist to see it, otherwise, he should have it written in his findings. Does it say on the report that the colon looks 'normal'?

Hugs!

Krista