Hi
I have stage 3 (technically 4 becuae they found a spot on my sacrum, but its not a vital organ so my Doctor told me not to get oo hung up on stages, particualrly in my case) Rectal Cancer. He did a CT Scan after the colonoscopy showed a tumor of 3 cm that effected surrounding lymphnodes. He then ordered a CEA which showed my level at 37. I then saw a Chemo Oncologist who ordered a CT scan. The scan showed small spots in my lungs so he ordered a Pet Scan. The Oncologist also said he allways ordered Pet Scans as a baseline and can be considered a little more accurate than a CT Scan. That is his convservative approach. The Pet Scan concluded that the spots in my lungs were likely just scar tissue which is common, but needed to be watched nonetheless. In addition the PET revealed the small spot on my sacrum which didnt show on the CT. He said that sometimes Pet Scans showed false positives and he was very confused why the CT didnt show this (becuase they are considered accurate). I was also told the difference betwee the CT and Pet is that the Pet showed the entired torso while the CT only focused generally on vital organs contained within the torso. The Pet also shows lymphnodes under the arms and neck so it appears more comprehensive (and conservative). Since the Pet potentially showed a false positve, he needed to confirm that the spot in the sascrum was the same cancer as the rectum, or just a false positive. He ordered an MRI on the Pelvic region which was confirmed that this was likely cancer. Then, a biopsy of the sacrum to check for cancer cells. In my view, this is the most comprehensive and conservative approach.
I hope that helps and whatever has happened since you last wrote, just think positive which really helps. Have faith.
I just finished my first 6 week round of chemo and radiation. A positive attuitude has kept my side-effects to a minimum. Now I have a healing period and after 2 weeks my Doctors will reassess to determine next steps which are likely anterior resection surgery which scares me the most. A CEA test was just taken, but I am told that this can be elevated during treatment.
Stay in touch
Dan
Regards
Dan