I just returned from lung surgeon appointment. I really like this guy! Anyway, he ordered another PET/CT scan and also echo cardiogram so he can view the images before surgery. I will have another appointment with the lung surgeon after these scans which will probably take place the 3rd week of July - or perhaps sooner. I will have the surgery very shortly thereafter - so I am thinking by the end of July I will have lung surgery - maybe before. I won't have an exact date until probably the 3rd week of July after these tests have been completed and I have seen the surgeon one last time before surgery.
I will also have to have an EGD done during this time as well, before surgery. My stomach doctor wants to go in and see how my ulcer is healing. The surgeon wants this done before surgery. So much going on. I'm overwhelmed again.
Positron emission tomography, also called PET imaging or a PET scan, is a type of nuclear medicine imaging.
Nuclear medicine is a branch of medical imaging that uses small amounts of radioactive material to diagnose and determine the severity of or treat a variety of diseases, including many types of cancers, heart disease, gastrointestinal, endocrine, neurological disorders and other abnormalities within the body. Because nuclear medicine procedures are able to pinpoint molecular activity within the body, they offer the potential to identify disease in its earliest stages as well as a patient’s immediate response to therapeutic interventions.
Nuclear medicine imaging procedures are noninvasive and, with the exception of intravenous injections, are usually painless medical tests that help physicians diagnose and evaluate medical conditions. These imaging scans use radioactive materials called radiopharmaceuticals or radiotracers.
Depending on the type of nuclear medicine exam, the radiotracer is either injected into the body, swallowed or inhaled as a gas and eventually accumulates in the organ or area of the body being examined. Radioactive emissions from the radiotracer are detected by a special camera or imaging device that produces pictures and provides molecular information.
In many centers, nuclear medicine images can be superimposed with computed tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to produce special views, a practice known as image fusion or co-registration. These views allow the information from two different exams to be correlated and interpreted on one image, leading to more precise information and accurate diagnoses. In addition, manufacturers are now making single photon emission computed tomography/computed tomography (SPECT/CT) and positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) units that are able to perform both imaging exams at the same time. An emerging imaging technology, but not readily available at this time is PET/MRI.
A PET scan measures important body functions, such as blood flow, oxygen use, and sugar (glucose) metabolism, to help doctors evaluate how well organs and tissues are functioning.
CT imaging uses special x-ray equipment, and in some cases a contrast material, to produce multiple images or pictures of the inside of the body. These images can then be interpreted by a radiologist on a computer monitor. CT imaging provides excellent anatomic information.
Today, almost all PET scans are performed on instruments that are combined PET and CT scanners. The combined PET/CT scans provide images that pinpoint the anatomic location of abnormal metabolic activity within the body. The combined scans have been shown to provide more accurate diagnoses than the two scans performed separately.
What is an echocardiogram?
An echocardiogram (echo) is a test that uses high frequency sound waves (ultrasound) to make pictures of your heart. The test is also called echocardiography or diagnostic cardiac ultrasound.
Quick facts
An echo uses sound waves to create pictures of your heart’s chambers, valves, walls and the blood vessels (aorta, arteries, veins) attached to your heart.
A probe called a transducer is passed over your chest. The probe produces sound waves that bounce off your heart and “echo” back to the probe. These waves are changed into pictures viewed on a video monitor.
An echo can’t harm you.
Why do people need an echo test?
Your doctor may use an echo test to look at your heart’s structure and check how well your heart functions.
The test helps your doctor find out:
The size and shape of your heart, and the size, thickness and movement of your heart’s walls.
How your heart moves.
The heart’s pumping strength.
If the heart valves are working correctly.
If blood is leaking backwards through your heart valves (regurgitation).
If the heart valves are too narrow (stenosis).
If there is a tumor or infectious growth around your heart valves.
The test also will help your doctor find out if there are:
Problems with the outer lining of your heart (the pericardium).
Problems with the large blood vessels that enter and leave the heart.
Blood clots in the chambers of your heart.
Abnormal holes between the chambers of the heart.
What are the risks?
An echo can’t harm you.
An echo doesn’t hurt and has no side effects.
What happens during the echo?
Echo tests are done by specially trained technicians. You may have your test done in your doctor’s office, an emergency room, an operating room, a hospital clinic or a hospital room. The test takes about an hour.
You lie on a table and a technician places small metal disks (electrodes) on your chest. The disks have wires that hook to an electrocardiograph machine. An electrocardiogram (ECG or EKG) keeps track of your heartbeat during your test.
The room is dark so your technician can better see the video monitor.
Your technician puts gel on your chest to help sound waves pass through your skin.
Your technician may ask you to move or hold your breath briefly to get better pictures.
The probe (transducer) is passed across your chest. The probe produces sound waves that bounce off your heart and “echo” back to the probe.
The sound waves are change into pictures and displayed on a video monitor. The pictures on the video monitor are recorded so your doctor can look at them later.
So, that's my day so far! Off for a short nap then playtime with the Playful Poodles :)
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