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Qestion regarding CT scan

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Qestion regarding CT scan

13 років тому 0 +0 / -0 2778

Hi All!

Now I'm even more curious about the heart & lung scan issue. I have a neighbor who is a Physicians Assistant who works in nuclear medicine and radiation therapy for cancer patients. She's almost like a sister to me and I'll discuss this issue with her at length and ask for her recommendations. I may not be able to catch up with her until this weekend, but I'll definitely do it and report back. I may rethink my current mindset about having a scan prior to having any symptoms after talking to her, but I'd also talk to my physician, too. The Lord knows that I went through a bit of a hassle to quit smoking just so I might avoid an early heart attack and lung cancer!

So thankful for the SSC and all my quit buddies!

Jim

Quit Meter

$48,465.00

Amount Saved
Quit Meter

Days: 1183 Hours: 5

Minutes: 24 Seconds: 26

Life Gained
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6462

Smoke Free Days
Quit Meter

193,860

Cigarettes Not Smoked

13 років тому 0 +0 / -0 618

Hi Sticking to it,

I wrote a huge reply to you yesterday and just before I hit the 'post' button, I dropped out of Windows Explorer!

To cut a long story short.....don't dismiss scans out of hand. I went for an x-ray 5 years ago which showed 'something.' I had a scan and found out about my cancer. Many many scans later.....my husband jokes that I glow in the dark now!.....I have regular scans to see if my cancer has returned. Because of that scan I have had 5 more years of precious life and I look forward to many more.

Whatever you do, just enjoy the freedom you now have by not smoking.

Love Lolly.

13 років тому 0 +0 / -0 1985

Hi Ashley, Jim

Thank you for your replies. As Jim pointed out there is an initial and then several follow up CT scans to do to check the lungs. My Doctor said that many people don't want to do them because, like Jim, the scans usually finds something and that something is benign, and the patients ends up in worry for months until its resolved.

I asked my doctor about doing an x ray first and he said x rays won't show anything. But based upon Jim's account it did show something. Maybe my doc meant that x rays don't show things until they are too big to doing anything about. I read the CT scan shows tumors as small as 2 mm to 5 mm.

I did not know that smoking causing calcium (plague) deposits in your arteries and that whys the heart CT scan was recommended. This scan is a one time test and has minimal radiation. Neither of the scans are covered by insurance so the doctor tells me but they are relatively inexpensive as modern day tests go; $300 lung and $150 heart. You know, my lungs feel good and I don't thing I'm going to do that test however the heart I'm considering.

Thank you both so much

Stickin

13 років тому 0 +0 / -0 2778

Hey Stickin'!!!

Great to see you again! I started my career as a glassblower a little over 15 years ago and learned from my mentor about the hazards of the profession. These included using asbestos paper to insulate and form tools and holders, etc. and silica that was vaporized when heating quartz glass. Both of these materials, if not used properly could potentially cause cancer. (BTW... I no longer use asbestos!) Consequently, I discussed this with my family physician and he recommended that I have a base-line chest x-ray done with follow-up x-rays done at 5 years. My 5 year x-ray revealed a spot on my lung and then my doctor recommended the chest CT scan, followed by another after 3 months to check to see if the spot was growing. Thankfully, the spot did not increase in size, so the verdict was that the spot was probably some scar tissue or something. Anyways, I had another follow-up CT scan a year later with no growth of the spot. You can imagine the scare that all of this gave me and was one of the contributing factors that influenced my decision to quit smoking!

I smoked for over 37 years and my physician never recommended a lung CT scan until the spot showed up on x-ray, nor have I ever heard of a doctor recommending that to my friends that continue to smoke. Maybe the scan would be a good test to have if you were having some symptoms. Personally, I would ask my physician if he thought that a chest x-ray would be suitable to detect any irregularities in my lungs before taking that next step of having a CT scan. An x-ray is much less expensive with much less radiation. If there were any concern after an x-ray, then a CT scan would be recommended. Also, I really didn't care for the nauseous feeling I got from the iodine dye injection prior to the CT scan.

I also have a family history of heart disease which may have been caused by smoking. My brother and father both had heart attacks in their 50's and yes, that was another of my motivating factors to quit. I'm on cholesterol lowering pills and low-dose aspirin, but have never heard about the recommendation of having a calcium scan.

I am sure that the scans would give your physician some great information about your current health and may now be considered standard operating procedure... sort of like a preventative maintenance program for your vehicle. I guess you'll have to decide if you think that it is worth the expense both monetarily (insurance deductable?), and radiation-wise.

I hope that this gives you something to think about. Remember I'm not a physician, just a glassblower and these are some of the things I would find out before I would commit to the scans.

Jim

Quit Meter

$48,465.00

Amount Saved
Quit Meter

Days: 1183 Hours: 5

Minutes: 24 Seconds: 26

Life Gained
Quit Meter

6462

Smoke Free Days
Quit Meter

193,860

Cigarettes Not Smoked

13 років тому 0 +0 / -0 11226

Hi Sticking to it,

I am not that informed about CT lung screening but I know that it can catch lung cancer very early on which could be crucial to saving lives. People diagnosed with lung cancer typically die within the first 5 years of diagnosis. If the cancer can be caught earlier it is much more likely that it can be treated.

Have you talked to your doctor about your concerns around radiation? If this was a test that was done annually I may be about the accumulated affect but since it is only a one time test perhaps the concerns around radiation won't be as bad?

In any case, talk to your doctor.

Let us know what you find out and what you decide to do.

Ashley, Health Educator

Here to help :)

13 років тому 0 +0 / -0 1985

Hope everyone is well. I have a question for those in the know. My doctor recommends a CT cardiac calcium scan for people who have a history of smoking. This scan detects plague buildup in the arteries. Has your doctor recommend this procedure for you or anyone you know? Have you thought about having or had this procedure done?

The doctor also recommends a CT lung screening for cancer. I thought the chance of lung cancer was nearly zero after 10 to 15 years of not smoking. The doctor says no; you can still get in long after that.

My concern is the large amount of radiation these scans deliver.

Sticking to it

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Qestion regarding CT scan