I realize its been a few weeks since the last post, but sometimes I'm not sure what to say when there is some uncertainty and I have to do some processing myself - Jenny and I went to the oncologist appointment last month, where there were highs...lows...peaks and valleys - It was a little like a roller coaster ride, and we left still feeling unclear - It appears that the largest mass that was in my chest (mediastinum) has decreased exponentially, however there is still a pingpong ball remaining.... apparently the million dollar question of whether it is scar tissue....or cancer.... ??
So I requested a PET scan(Positron Emission Tomography), which apparently I qualify for because the mass is bigger than 2cm. PET scans provide information on metabolic activity in the body and can be helpful in establishing whether or not there is active cancer in your body. There is of course pros and cons to this type of scan (as it can produce "false positives" and open a can of worms) So that being said, we decided to pursue the PET scan.
I just returned from Sunnybrook after having this radioactive procedure done (The nurse injects you with a radioactive glucose tracer that runs through your body) It will take some time for "them" (I don't know who "they" are)to interpret the scan - and I won't be meeting my Oncologist until mid April - I am not expecting to have definative results, but it should provide some more pieces to the puzzle
The picture is apparently what a PET scan looks like - I asked to see my own yesterday, but to no avail....
I will keep you posted :)
