Preference for accuracy on chest

[Lyn]

Hi all, I am waiting to have tests done after not quite completing radiation with Xeloda. CTs have missed lumps in the past so I am having MRI on head neck and shoulder, I wanted chest as well but technition says CT is better for chest, I lost faith when I could see and feel lump in neck and CT didn't pick it up. Thoughts please. Oh, I have been coming off Morphine so I haven't been very sociable lately.

Love & Hugs Lyn

[Lani]

Generally, CT is better for bony detail. It is based on xray and detects smaller changes in calcium hydroxyapatite (the main ingredient of your bones). CTs are also cut with smaller slices, thus, it has the potential to show more detail.

MRI is not based on radiation. It relies on different amounts of fat and water in different tissues. It is better for showing soft tissues and the cuts are further apart, so if something is
very small it is possible that the cuts are taken just above and just below it and miss it altogether.

Bone scans /Pet scans can see some things even while they are too small to show up on CT or MRI.

Which study is better in any once instance depends what you and your doctor are looking for (bony mets, lung mets, skin nodules, brain mets) as to which study is best. Someday they will give an intravenous injection of Her2 monoclonal antibody labelled (attached ) substance which will allow detection of even smaller areas of tumor cells. Until then, it is never bad to ask questions(perhaps even of the radiologist who will be reading your study).

I figured out a whole script as to how you could probably finagle to get what you want, but don't think it appropriate to paste. Send me your email address if you want to hear it!

Hope this helps.

Best of luck!

Lani

[jessica]

Hi Lyn~
I specifically request CT/PET scans for re-staging. I have a history of scar tissue detected by CT, but differentiated PET as non-metabollic tissue-that's always a huge reliefe when the PET scan shows dead spots!
BUT, PET scans can pick up inflammatory tissue too-especially in the lungs.I've had recurrent lung nodules that light up on the PET but are too small to biopsy, but rarely show consistent growth or shrinking...just appear & disappear from scan to scan.PET scans also don't provide clear information about dimesions/size-just how much activity the spot shows.
Most recently, I had a CT/PET & this time they did the CT w/&w/out contrast-for a more detailed CT to compare against the PET. Typically a CT w/out contrast just gives gross information.
Hope this info is helpful. Please feel free to contact me @jmalucas4@aol.com if I can help w/anything else.
Prayers, Faith & Courage!