Other Medical Problems

My husband has also had other findings on his CT. He has had 2 CT's and one PET scan, and even though the lastest makes reference to no changes from previous scan they were never noted on the previous scans.

He has "distal abdominal aorta is mildly aneurysmal measuring 3.2 x 2.6 cm. This does not apprear significantly changed." First mention of it was on the 3rd scan in July.

"There is a small low density lesion extending from the posterior cortex of the left mid kidney probably representing a small cyst. This is stable." No mention on previous scans.

"There appears to be high density in the inferior gall bladder, possibly representing gallstone. This is unchanged compared with the prior CT scan." No mention on previous scans.

The oncologists did not mention any of these things except the AAA and I had to ask about it. I did not read the other things until I left his office so I did not ask about them. He told us that they would not do anything about the AAA unless it was 5 cm. He said we could go to a vascular surgeon if we wanted to but any treatment would be classified as elective and would probably not be covered by insurance. We agreed that he would watch it, and let us know if/when we should go further.

I did ask the surgeon as we had an appointment with him the afternoon we got the CT scan results about the kidney lesion and he said they really could not tell if it was a cyst from a CT scan and an ultrasound would show that better.

He sees his Onc. on 9/8, and we will question him further about it.

MA

jana11 said:

Sorry guys, but that is the bad side of getting lots of scans. It is very normal for scans to pick up things that have been present for years. Just be thankful the AAA was found. Now your husband can make good changes to get cholesterol down.

It is also VERY normal for the 2nd CT to make note of "no changes" when talking about a finding that wasn't mentioned previously. The CT is a series of 2-D pictures of a 3-D person. Different "cuts" will show the body slightly differently, which may make a finding much clearer. ALSO, each CT is read by a radiologist. Some radiologist are better than others at catching small findings.

I know this doesn't make the stress reduce too much, but it is how modern medicine works. One of my lung scans was NED - the next one noted pulm nodules that were unchanged from previous report. Then, my next scan continued to show no changes. So I was back to NED. It is a terrible process that causes more grey hair. Try to focus on living each day without worrying about tomorrow. Hope for the best.

I hope this helps you at least understand a bit. Try to smile more.

jana

Thanks for taking the time to help explain it. I knew that at least the CT scan was only as good as the radioligist. That is one field of medicine that I think is a little more art and talent than science. Of course, that's because even the ones I have seen with arrows pointing to the finding I see NOTHING.

I decided on the July scan that we would discuss it further with the Onc. in Sept (obviously none of it concerned him), and take a 2 month worry break. I am doing pretty good at it too. If it is really something to worry about, it will present itself in due time (I guess).

Thanks again.

mwomack said:

Thanks for taking the time to help explain it. I knew that at least the CT scan was only as good as the radioligist. That is one field of medicine that I think is a little more art and talent than science. Of course, that's because even the ones I have seen with arrows pointing to the finding I see NOTHING.

I decided on the July scan that we would discuss it further with the Onc. in Sept (obviously none of it concerned him), and take a 2 month worry break. I am doing pretty good at it too. If it is really something to worry about, it will present itself in due time (I guess).

Thanks again.

My pleasure.