help with pr erad CT scan

melania

Hi girls ,

I am now joining the radiation group , i had chemo first and then DMX , i have to start the other part  of this journey : RADIATION .

Ok i have to do a ct scan before radiation , and i am scared and anxious about any kind of scan after my diagnosis (not from the scans ofcourse , from getting the results !)

I know that its not a diagnostic ct scan and its without contrast for the anatomy purpose but will it show the mets just in case of anything being in there ?? I was scheduled to have the ct on coming Friday but i changed it to maonday cuz i dont like to do this kinda stuff on a friday and not hear anything till monday . I was just wondering what your experiences are? I would really like to start it sooner than later and i know from friday to monday is not a big deal but the difference is that if i do it on friday i will start it next week but with monday it wont be till another week.

ok girls need advice please tell me what they see in the scan ??

thanks

redsox

Simulation is a data gathering session usually done with a CT simulator.  They position you on the simulator which replicates the treatment machine and take the CT.  This gathers data about the exact geometry of your anatomy and your tumor or the location where your tumor was and any other areas they want to target.  For me the specific targets were the clips left to mark the location where the tumor had been and the seroma filling the surgical cavity.  Then they put reference marks on you with dot-like tattoos or sometimes markers so that they can consistently replicate the exact position. 

They take the data and develop the treatment plan, which means they try various arrangements of the radiation beams to create a dose distribution that delivers the amounts of radiation prescribed to the areas they want to treat while avoiding areas they don't want to expose, as much as possible. 

The area scanned is the abdomen only, and perhaps not all of that. It does see the whole slice through your body in that area but the area depends on how much they expect to treat. 

"Regional lymph nodes cannot be directly seen on planning CT, unless pathologically enlarged."  per Clinical Radiation Oncology by Gunderson and Tepper, p. 1484 (one of the standard rad onc textbooks).  It would seem that they would not be able to see cancer spread except by happenstance. As for results, tell the rad onc of your concern and ask him or her to tell you what the CT showed by the end of the simulation. It is not sent on to a diagnostic radiologist to be read -- the rad onc is the one reading it.