PET / CT Scan Preparation

Hi Everyone.

As we have quite a bit of scanning activity and many questions I thought it pertinent to post the following.

PLEASE NOTE: THIS IS MY OPINION BASED ON LOTS OF READINGS AND CONSULTATIONS WITH NATURAL THERAPISTS - SO PLEASE DO YOUR OWN RESEARCH ON THIS. THERE IS HOWEVER NO REAL DOWNSIDE TO TAKING THIS APPROACH:

As we all have to get a PET/CT in order to ‘Stage’ or check if our Cancer is still there or not, I thought I would post what I think is a good idea for preparation before your scan and also some steps post Scan to reduce the harmful effects.

The PET/CT is usually the most effective way to locate cancer but they involve radiation and the injection of a radioactive sugar in order for them to work. While the medics generally claim the PET/CT is harmless, I would argue as how can they possibly be ‘good’ for us. Anyway, as we are stuck with this technology for now, there are a few things we can do to reduce potential harm from the PET/CT.

Firstly, you can control the frequency and number of scans you receive. This is a personal choice and something you must carefully consider for yourself. It’s a horrible ‘Catch 22’ situation, where if you don’t scan and don’t detect the cancer or the recurrence, that’s bad, OR if you Scan too often and increase your risk of getting cancer or a recurrence, that’s also bad. You have toi decide what you are personally comfortable with.

Radiation and the radioactive sugar can induce the occurrence of ‘free radicals’ in the body which in turn can damage our cells and alter DNA and cause disease including cancer. Getting X-rays and PET /CT Scans are shown to increase our risk or getting cancer and or recurrence. This is a fact.

Antioxidants are essentially molecules that scavenge and neutralize these ‘free radicals’ in the body. Many foods contain antioxidants, so if we eat a diet rich in antioxidants and if our immune system is working properly, that usually does the job. I don’t however think we were built to withstand the rigors of X-rays and radiation and certainly not to the level we on these boards have endured, so giving your body some support to deal with the increased levels of free radicals in my opinion, is a very good idea.

We can do this by loading up with these antioxidants for a few days before your scan. This can be done by eating them in raw food form and in supplement form. As the bigger the hit the better, I suggest using supplements as you can get more in and faster. Eating lots of Antioxidant rich foods is also a very good idea regardless of when. The top 10 Antioxidants are : Vitamin C *, Vitamin E*, Beta-carotene*, Selenium*, Lutein, Lycopene, Anthocyanins, Coenzyme Q10*, Picnogenol and Alpha-lipoic acid*. The ones marked here with an Asterisk * should be very easy to get from your local pharmacy or health food /supplement store. You should be able to take double or triple the recommended daily dose for 2-3 days before your scan. Best after a meal. If you can’t get hold of all these, even taking 2-3 is good so if you are restricted for whatever reason, get the Vitamin C, E for sure and maybe Selenium or Betacarotene. If you can only do one, get Vitamin C. You can take 2-3 grams 2 or 3 times a day. The only side effect is you may get the ‘runs’.

You are advised to not take anything except water for 7-8 hours prior to your scan so load up on these supplements before that time and as said, starting a few days before the scan is best. Once you are finished your Scan, you re-dose again (esp Vit C, 2-3 grams twice or three times a day) as soon as you can, and get into fresh vegetable juices (Carrot, Celery, Beetroot, berries, etc) and if available, a few shots of Wheat Grass juice and of course loads of water for the rest of the day. This will help neutralize the negative effects of the scan and flush the nasty stuff out of your system. You are advised not to go near pregnant women or little kids for 6 - 8 hours after the scan and also to close the toilet lid before flushing and double flush for those 8 hours which is how long it will take to before the radioactive solution is safely dead.

The day prior to your scan it is also important to not take ‘any’ form of sugar whatsoever, nor carbohydrates 9they turn into sugars), juices or fruits. It is probably best to have a ‘huge’ breakfast the day before and if you can – then fast on water till your scan. Having your body clear from sugars will allow for a more accurate scan which is what you want.

There is plenty of information about these buried on the net or in your library. I hope this helps some of you in preparing for your scan to 1. Get a more accurate result and 2. Minimized the negative effects caused by the PET/CT and put your mind a l little more at ease.
I believe we need to take every step available to us to stay healthy and remove as many things as we can that promote or progresses cancer and other disease. This is a simple and easy step to take and you don’t really have anything to lose.

Best to all

Scambuster