Head Spinning Surgery Today

teacher911

Hi I was recently diagnosed with a recurrence after having a bilateral masectomy 4 years ago.  Everything is moving very fast and my head is spinning.   I am having surgery today to remove the mass.  They did a needle aspiration 2 weeks ago and determined that it was grade 3.  Since then I have had an MRI and PET scan.  The PET scan showed a hot spot in my left rib cage but nothing else in my nodes.  I am so confused, My orginal diagnosis was DCIS for which they perfomed 2 lumpectomies but couldn't get clear margins.  That's when I decided to have the bilateral masectomy.  I was not given radiation because they didn't feel it was necessary after all the surgery and the fact "it is in-situ"  What questions do I need to ask about the PET scan and any upcoming treatment?  I was told if it was local I would have 6 weeks radiation, but now i don't know.  Also can a PET scan show a place in the bones but would be caused by something other than cancer.  Any info would be very helpful!

bevin

Hi teacher91. I am sorry you are dealing with this again and wanted to make sure I gave my support. While I don't have experience with what you are going through, I'm certain someone will be along soon to chime in and offer their knowledge.

hugs

Bevin

blainejennifer

A PET scan can certainly give a false positive. If you've had recent damage to the area, or osteo-arthritis, it can show as a hot spot. I believe any active bone remodeling can seem hot.

I'm not a medical professional, just someone who has had more than a few scans.