CancerCompass message board discussion started by Sharon13 on 8/30/2007 http://www.cancercompass.com/message-board/message/all,15754,0.htm Tue, 02 Dec 2008 00:00:00 GMT Tue, 02 Dec 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://backend.userland.com/rss RSS.NET: http://www.rssdotnet.com/ I had cat scans and mri tests that showed I had 6 tumors in my body.  After surgerically removing them all I later found out that I had one on my upper arm.  My question is what kind of test would have shown that I had a kidney cancer tumor on my arm??  The doctors told me I would have to look for tumors on my arms and legs myself and then they would take a cat scan or mri on that location. I guess when you have a full body can scan that doesnt' really mean full body.  Thanks  Sharon13 Sharon13 Thu, 30 Aug 2007 00:00:00 GMT My husband has not had a full body scan. He was told if had any unusual pain to be sure and let them know. I have wondered why they have not performed a PET scan. I think I'm almost afraid for them to do one. My husband has had 3 tumors removed from his brain and a very small one from his lung. Are you on any kind of treatments? Kim p Fri, 31 Aug 2007 00:00:00 GMT  On 8/31/2007 Kim p wrote:My husband has not had a full body scan. He was told if had any unusual pain to be sure and let them know. I have wondered why they have not performed a PET scan. I think I'm almost afraid for them to do one. My husband has had 3 tumors removed from his brain and a very small one from his lung. Are you on any kind of treatments?Thanks Kim for replying..I am not on any treatments..i just have them taken out as I find them.  I did try sutent for 11 days but got very sick and decided to do the surgical route which is working out good for me so far.  I think the reason they don't do a PET scan on your husband is because most kidney turmors do not show up on PET because its a different substance or color( as I was told) than other cancers.  A PET scan is a full body scan but I still would like to know why CAT scans do not include the legs and arms for kidney patients which are the only scans that show kidney tumors.  Thanks Sharon13 Sharon13 Fri, 31 Aug 2007 00:00:00 GMT Good afternoon Kim.I wanted to clarify what Sharon said about PET scans based on my experience. I have had around a dozen CT/PET combinations. Our understanding is that PET scans are very effective with RCC. In fact, my doctor prefers them. I do believe that PET scans are still fairly new and most doctors do not know how to read them. The way my doctor explained it to us is that a CT scan is very good at showing the existance and size of a tumor which in most cases is good enough. However, a PET scan shows the metabolic activity of a tumor (meaning whether it is dead or alive). This was important in a case like mine where after being on Sutent for two treatment cycles, my tumors had shrunk tremendously but more importantly they were dead. Eventually, they disappeared all together. As far as body scan vs. partial--all of my scans have been in the upper body since my RCC had been in my kidney and liver areas. That is the part where they are most concerned. It seems logical that they could do a full body scan (either CT or PET) if my doctor wanted that done. By the way, at least for me the same machine does the CT and PET scan but they use two different types of contrast. Make sure that you ask for the one that is easier on the kidneys since I expect that your husband has had one removed as I did.Please tell your husband good luck with his treatments and please don't hesitate to ask addtional questions.Bunker        Bunker Tue, 04 Sep 2007 00:00:00 GMT