cat vs mri vs pet scan

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natelaugh
Posts: 95
Joined: Wed Apr 03, 2019 11:40 pm

cat vs mri vs pet scan

Postby natelaugh » Tue Aug 13, 2019 3:39 pm

Hi,

My dad is almost finish with his 12 cycles 5FU treatments. He is soon to be scheduled for a scan. Normally, a CAT scan with contrast is done. However, he has chronic kidney disease. The doctor's reason for CAT scan is because he and other oncologists are train to read CAT scan. He claims MRI or PET is too hard to read because overload information. Is it more harder to read/detect cancer using MRI, PET scan vs CAT scan? Or should get second opinion?

Thanks,
Nate.
Caregiver to 80M
DX:CC,RC,desc
11/2018 rightPain
1/19/19 scopy,path
1/23 CTscan
2/19 surgery
2/26-2/28 NGTube
2/28-3/14 TPN bc ileus
3/2 2nd surgeryCloseOpenWound
3/4-3/28 woundVac
size: 6cm Adenocarcinoma
grade Poorly
Stage IIIC T3N2aMx
PositiveLymph:5of28
BaselineCEA:68
LVI:Y
PNI:N
Surgical margins:clear
MSI:MMR (MLH1, MSH2, MSH6, PMS2) Intact nuclear expression
Lynch status:N
Laparascopic, partial colectomy
CEA:3/28/19 2.8
Chemo:4/16/19-9/17/19 5FU,12cycles,every 14days,leucoverin,zofran,Dexamethasone

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betsydoglover
Posts: 978
Joined: Mon Aug 14, 2006 2:31 pm
Facebook Username: Betsy Lindh Williams
Location: Maryland - outside DC

Re: cat vs mri vs pet scan

Postby betsydoglover » Tue Aug 13, 2019 4:37 pm

Wow - a good radiologist should be well able to read a PET only. I did that for a while. Plenty of radiologists who specialize in advanced imaging - find one of those.

If it is the onc's opinion about these scans, then don't listen to it. If the radiologist's, then find another one.
Betsy
diag. Stage IV, 5/05, liver met
lap sigmoid colectomy, 6/05
6 cycles Xeloda/oxaliplatin/Avastin (NED after 2)
11/08 9x13mm right lower lobe lung nodule; removed via VATS 4/09
NED
6 cycles Xeloda + Avastin
Avastin only 10/09-5/11
Still NED 06/18

cartech78
Posts: 78
Joined: Thu Oct 25, 2018 6:22 pm

Re: cat vs mri vs pet scan

Postby cartech78 » Tue Aug 13, 2019 6:12 pm

Different scans work better for different organs! MRI is better on liver vs ct scan but on lungs the CT scan is better. The pet scan to my knowledge i thought was the best because any tumors actually light up. This is my understanding but im not a doctor so it’s possible im wrong a little here as well.
40 Y/o male
Dx 10/5/18 stage lV CRC
Sg colon
23 inoperable liver mets largest 4.5 cm
Colon resection 10/6/18 clean margins
Starting FolFox on 11/18
2nd opinion at MSK on 12/18
HAI pump installed on 3/6/2019 also found 20 more small tumors on liver scans missed
7/2/2019 MRI and CT show only 2 liver tumors visible and they are shrunk by 3/4
11/25/19- Liver resection at MSK- got out all cancer and am NED. More scans and mop up chemo to follow.
1 month Scan clear! Jun/20 scans still clear. Off chemo since 3/20

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CRguy
Posts: 10473
Joined: Sun Feb 10, 2008 6:00 pm

Re: cat vs mri vs pet scan

Postby CRguy » Wed Aug 14, 2019 11:55 pm

natelaugh wrote:Hi,
My dad is almost finish with his 12 cycles 5FU treatments. He is soon to be scheduled for a scan. Normally, a CAT scan with contrast is done. However, he has chronic kidney disease. The doctor's reason for CAT scan is because he and other oncologists are train to read CAT scan. He claims MRI or PET is too hard to read because overload information. Is it more harder to read/detect cancer using MRI, PET scan vs CAT scan? Or should get second opinion?

Thanks,
Nate.


Respectfully :
radiologists like what they like and contrast enhances the definition in a scan = WHAT IS BEST FOR THEM

NON contrast CT scans can and SHOULD be done with patients who have existing renal issues .... DUUUUHHHH !!!! :twisted:

Second opinion would be required IMO if the primary Docs do not see the patient's issues with having contrast !!!!!

PET, MRI, CT ... ALL have contrasts injected to make the diagnostic image the best it can be
I get it = best image is in the patient's best interest to get the BEST diagnosis

BUTT ... NOT if contrast IS the issue for that patient !!!!!

Best wishes
Just my 2 cents worth !

CRguy
Caregiver x 4
Stage IV A rectal cancer/lung met
17 Year survivor
my life is an ongoing totally randomized UNcontrolled experiment with N=1 !
Review of my Journey so far

natelaugh
Posts: 95
Joined: Wed Apr 03, 2019 11:40 pm

Re: cat vs mri vs pet scan

Postby natelaugh » Thu Sep 19, 2019 11:02 pm

My dad recent CEA went from 7 to 12. This is a big jump and the only thing we did differently was getting an XRay for his back pain. His oncologist wants a CT scan and because he think it is better than MRI. I have ask him many that we want MRI and not CT. He refuse to do an MRI. We are schedule to get a second oncologist opinion for my dad. My reason for not getting a CT scan is because of the radiation and given his age it can be harmful. What can we do to get a MRI?

Thanks,
Nate.
Caregiver to 80M
DX:CC,RC,desc
11/2018 rightPain
1/19/19 scopy,path
1/23 CTscan
2/19 surgery
2/26-2/28 NGTube
2/28-3/14 TPN bc ileus
3/2 2nd surgeryCloseOpenWound
3/4-3/28 woundVac
size: 6cm Adenocarcinoma
grade Poorly
Stage IIIC T3N2aMx
PositiveLymph:5of28
BaselineCEA:68
LVI:Y
PNI:N
Surgical margins:clear
MSI:MMR (MLH1, MSH2, MSH6, PMS2) Intact nuclear expression
Lynch status:N
Laparascopic, partial colectomy
CEA:3/28/19 2.8
Chemo:4/16/19-9/17/19 5FU,12cycles,every 14days,leucoverin,zofran,Dexamethasone

claudine
Posts: 809
Joined: Tue Mar 12, 2019 2:41 pm
Location: Montana

Re: cat vs mri vs pet scan

Postby claudine » Fri Sep 20, 2019 2:21 pm

cartech78 wrote:Different scans work better for different organs! MRI is better on liver vs ct scan but on lungs the CT scan is better. The pet scan to my knowledge i thought was the best because any tumors actually light up. This is my understanding but im not a doctor so it’s possible im wrong a little here as well.


When DH got his PET in January, the radiologist found the adrenal gland tumor. However, the March CT scan found the lung tumors. By going back to the PET the radiologist was able to see those, once he knew they were there, but they were too small to "light up". So even PET scans have their limitations...
Wife of Dx 04/18 (51 yo). MSS, KRAS G12A, no primary

Tumors: L4 04/18; left adrenal gland & small lung nodules 03/19
rectum 02/22 (pT3 pN0 stage 2A); L3 09/22

Surgeries: intestinal resect. 05/18 (no cancer - Crohn's); adrenalectomy 02/20
L3-L4-L5 fusion and corpectomy 05/20; LAR 04/22; ileo reversal 09/22
L2-L3 fusion and corpectomy 09/22

Treatments: EBRT 04/18; SBRT 02/19; Failed adjuvant Xelox ; Folfiri/Avastin 03/19 - 01/20
adjuvant chemorad (Xeloda) 06/22; SBRT 11/22; Xeloda/Avastin since 01/24

Mohrfamily
Posts: 267
Joined: Tue May 22, 2018 4:04 pm

Re: cat vs mri vs pet scan

Postby Mohrfamily » Mon Sep 23, 2019 9:47 am

Every doctor/specialist is different in terms of what they prefer and how they interpret scans.

Recently my husband's PET told a radiologist that the liver mets had progressed, this didn't sit well with our oncologist and to her something just didn't add up with his normal level numbers and nothing spiking ti suggest otherwise she ordered an MRI.

The way she explained it to us is that sometimes a PET can be over sensitive. She ordered the MRI (which came back with SMALLER numbers) because she can get measurements from the pictures in an MRI you don't get with PET.

So its anyone's educated guess.
DH dx stage IV liver mets largest 6x6.4 cm
Colonoscopy/endoscopy/port place 5/29
4cm mass in splenic flexure
1st round FolFox 5/30
08/2018 new CT no new lesions, clear lungs, slight decrease in colon.
3/2019 PET scan shows greater than 6-7 liver mets largest measuring 3x3 cm. No growth nothing new.
8/15/19 largest liver lesion 1.9x2.1
9/16/2019 OSU to proceed with surgery implant HAI and colon resection
11/19 resection of colon HAI placed
2/20 CEA back to 1000s, liver worse than when we began-start FOLFIRI


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