The images from a CT scan show excellent soft tissue detail. There are usually no restrictions placed on you when the procedure is complete. You may eat, drive and go on with your day as normal. Express any concerns beforehand with your technician, and your provider will do their best to ensure you feel comfortable during the scan. The intravenous dye may cause an initial, mild burning sensation, a metallic taste in your mouth or a warm body flush that will disappear quickly. Occasionally, mild reactions to the dye are experienced as a rash or itchiness.
Be sure to tell your doctor if you have ever had any reaction to contrast materials. An allergic reaction can be serious but is rare. After a technician reads the images, the results are sent to your doctor within 24 hours. Your doctor will be in contact with you to share the results and suggest a treatment plan.
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If you have diabetes or take metformin Glucophage , the dye may cause problems. Your doctor will tell you when to stop taking metformin and when to start taking it again after the test so you will not have problems. There is a small chance of getting cancer from having some types of CT scans.
If you are concerned about this risk, talk to your doctor about the benefits and risks of a CT scan and confirm that the test is needed. Results A computed tomography CT scan uses X-rays to make detailed pictures of structures inside the body. CT scan Normal: The organs and blood vessels are normal in size, shape, and location. No bleeding or collections of fluid are present. Abnormal: An organ is too large or too small, damaged, or infected. Foreign objects such as metal or glass fragments are present.
One or more blood vessels are blocked. A growth, fracture, infection, or other problem is found in an arm or leg. What Affects the Test The following may stop you from having the test or may change the test results: Pregnancy. CT scans are not usually done during pregnancy. Barium used for another test. Barium shows up on a CT scan. If a CT scan of the belly is needed, it should be done before any tests that use barium, such as a barium enema.
Metal objects in the body. These items, such as surgical clips or metal in joint replacements, may prevent a clear view of the body area. You are not able to lie still during the test. An ultrasound test, which doesn't use dangerous radiation, may give results similar to those of a CT scan.
If you are concerned about radiation exposure, ask your doctor if you can have an ultrasound instead of a CT scan. Children who need a CT scan may need special instructions for the test. The child will likely need to hold his or her breath during the scan. If the child is too young to hold still or is afraid, the doctor may give the child a medicine sedative to help him or her relax.
If your child is scheduled for a CT scan, talk with your child's doctor about the need for the scan and the risk of radiation exposure to your child. Special CT scanners called spiral helical CT scanners and multi-slice or multi-detector CT scanners are sometimes used for this test. Many modern scanners are multi-slice scanners.
These scanners can be used for many conditions, such as finding kidney stones, a pulmonary embolism, an enlarged prostate gland , or atherosclerosis. These special CT scanners can: Take better pictures of blood vessels and organs so other imaging tests may not be needed. Complete scans and provide pictures in less time. CT results are often compared to positron emission tomography PET results to help find cancer.
Some new scanners do both scans at the same time. An electron beam CT scan is another type of CT scan that can find atherosclerosis and coronary artery disease.
An electron beam CT scan is much faster than a standard CT scan and can take a good picture of a coronary artery while the heart is beating. Electron beam CT scans are not widely available. Another type of CT scanner, the multi-slice CT scan, is nearly as fast as electron beam CT scanners and is more widely available.
A CT angiogram can show two- and three-dimensional pictures of blood vessels and the heart. MRI may give different information than a CT scan about certain conditions. A low-dose CT is a way to scan the lungs more quickly than with a standard CT. Some doctors recommend this to screen for lung cancer in people who are older than 55 and who are at high risk for lung cancer. Experts disagree about the use of a CT method called full-body scanning to screen for coronary artery disease and cancers.
Full-body scanning is expensive, can lead to unnecessary tests or surgery, and may increase the chance of cancer from the radiation exposure.
Most doctors do not recommend these studies unless a person has a specific risk for a certain disease. References Citations Einstein AJ, et al. Estimating risk of cancer associated with radiation exposure from slice computed tomography coronary angiography. JAMA , 3 : — Other Works Consulted Bluemke, D, et al. Noninvasive coronary artery imaging: Magnetic resonance angiography and multidetector computed tomography angiography.
Circulation, — Detterbeck FC, et al. Screening for lung cancer. Diagnosis and management of lung cancer, 3rd ed. American College of Chest Physicians evidence-based clinical practice guidelines. Chest, 5, Suppl : e78S—e92S. Manual of Laboratory and Diagnostic Tests, 8th ed. Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams and Wilkins. National Comprehensive Cancer Network Non—Small Cell Lung Cancer, version 2. Mosby's Manual of Diagnostic and Laboratory Tests, 4th ed.
Louis: Mosby. Pearce MS, et al. Radiation exposure from CT scans in childhood and subsequent risk of leukaemia and brain tumours: A retrospective cohort study. Lancet, : — Christmas and new years came and went, I was pretty chilled out following doc's words. Staff at the hospital told me that unless urgent, my results most likely wouldn't be read and authorised until early Jan. He scheduled this appointment the evening of the 19th of December - before I'd even had my CT scan.
I thought I'd call and chase my scan results to see if they're in. It turns out they were read, authorised, and sent to the oncologist on the 22nd of December I had my scan the evening before. If my scan came back clear, I'd rather not take the time out of work, have seven large vials of blood taken, just to walk into his office and be discharged. It's also the NHS' time, money, and this is the busiest period for them following the winter appointment rush and staffing difficulties.
I'm also slightly concerned that my scan results were authorised and sent to the doctor so quickly, and that he hasn't discharged me nor contacted my GP since. I'm not a doctor, just a patient, but I do know that most oncologists prefer to give results, irrespective of whether the news is good or bad, face to face.
This gives you the chance to ask any questions you might have. Try not to read too much into fact that your scan results were completed so quickly. My own experience is that unless they are flagged as urgent my consultants don't read them until just before my appointment takes place.
Despite media hyperbole, Winter pressures don't have too much impact on out patient appointments such as Oncology. Bed-blockers have no impact unless people are referred to in-patients and ED is a distinct specialty needing a specific skillset makng it difficult to transfer staff from other departments.
I know this is all a bit scary but i would try and get on with life as normal as possible unti you get to see your oncologist. It took 2 or 3 weeks for my results to get to my oncologist and that was without it being over the Christmas period.. Good luck. Stay positive. Thank you for your kind advice! I will continue as normal. Sorry to hear you've also been through some stress - I wish you the best.
It's pretty nerve-wracking, even though I know that the consultant was only being thorough in ordering the scan. However, I had prostate cancer some 7 years ago and afterwards I discovered this useful little video. Watch the whole thing first time, then skip to 2 minutes in on subsequent occasions. It's a brief moment well 60 seconds of calm for when your brain wants to explode:.
Hi new to this had ct scan almost 5 weeks ago not been reported on yet had triple negative mets to node had 2 clear scans so far.
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