Pet Scan Results

[Maludagui]

Hello 🌺🎀 The result of pet scan shows a decrease in the affected area in the left hip from 4 to 2.5. It's good news. But an area appears in the rectum / anus that has to be observed. I have suffered a lot from hemorrhoids all my life. But with tamoxifen treatments and now Letrozole they are active all the time. Thank you for being here for all of us ❤️

[nstonerocks]

Seems like mostly good news. What are they suggesting if anything for area of concern?

[Maludagui]

Nothing very specific. Drink a lot of water (which I don't do much), use Preparation H suppositories and cream and wash with Epson Salt. But I was reading online and now I'm more scared than last night 😭😱 ‍

[MacroMom]

That's a good decrease in your hip area, I would take that as very good news - I hope it feels better too. Have they told you how closely they want to monitor the other area? I'm an online reader too, sometimes it's a mixed blessing. Try to enjoy the good news and keep drinking that water!

[Maludagui]

Hi. Yes you are correct. I have only met on left hip/ acetabulum My report text said : “New increased uptake within the rectum/anus cold represent inflammatory process. Correlation with clinical exam and symtomps is recommended to exclude an underlying neoplastic process”.

[Maludagui]

Thank you 🎀

[Teddielottie]

Sandra you are so knowledgeable and reassuring ... so glad you are on here !

I have a routine bowel scope screening tomorrow ( being offered by NHS here to people my age !) but I am not looking forward to it ... have to do an enema an hour before at home before going to my local hospital for the scope . I’ve arranged it at the end of my week off Ibrance to avoid any possible infection . Hoping it doesn’t show anything , but felt I should go ahead with it while it is being offered , but dreading it ...

Don’t know if any other ladies are having it or had it on here ? x

[mariootsi in reply to Teddielottie]

I have had a colonoscopy. I had to prep the day before. They put me to sleep and did the procedure. The prep was terrible but no side effects after the procedure.

[Teddielottie in reply to mariootsi]

Thank you . Will hear in 2 weeks if need a colonoscopy but today went ok , just a few bowel cramps during the procedure .x

[mariootsi in reply to Teddielottie]

Oh good. Glad it went well for you.

[Teddielottie]

Good news with the hip ! (I have Mets to the hip too but Ibrance appears to have worked on them so far , so wish you the same ) . I have a bowel scope routine screening tomorrow , which I am not looking forward to , but offered so feel I should do it . So I can imagine why you’re concerned about you’re scan ,but hopefully it’s nothing significant . Take care x

[Bailey3266]

A trick to make sure you get enough water is to buy a YETI or similar to a thermos that’ll keep water cold & euther fill a Brit’s water picture or similar and keep drinking until that’s gone or you’ve reached desired amount. Or pour it into a “shot” glass or 2-3 oz Dixie cup or ur favorite pretty juice glass from ur thermos cup or aYETI every half hour while awake take 2-3 shots of water. That’ll help especially with the heat wave this week! Also u can slice fresh fruit into your water picture or YETI etc.

I just started juicing (veggies, fruits & water/ice) into a Nutribullet instead of breakfast and keep in mind you can count that water as part of your daily intake; but soda, tea/coffee don’t count as they are dietetics I think—which may be preventing you from desire to drink water/so I’d try to juice, flavor your water and/or eliminate all/‘ost caffeinated beverages. I don’t drink but one cocktail if I go out to eat; but I think if you do/have sangria or put ice in ur wine etc; that’ll count too then 1glass becomes two with same amount of alcohol plus you’d get more water once ice melts! Rambling again! Hope it’s helpful.

[Teddielottie]

Thank you for getting back to me ! ...Yes reading the ‘NHS Bowel Cancer Screening Programme’ booklet it does say the technical term is flexible sigmoidoscopy screening and if they find any polyps they remove them using a tiny wire loop passed through the flexible tube ... and you get a letter 2 weeks after explaining the results of the screening ...just don’t like the idea of it !!

It is an NHS programme being offered to all men and women aged 55 to try and prevent bowel cancer (people are invited to have it only once at the age of 55 )

I did ring the helpline number and told them about my condition / medication but the nurse said it should be ok to have it as long as I am feeling well enough . (It’s my 5th day off Ibrance , which I restart on Monday subject to my usual bloods check. ) . Just haven’t met anyone who’s had it yet ! Not looking forward to it ( mid afternoon at my local hospital ... on a Saturday !) ...but will be brave ... and reward myself with a salted caramel muffin in the Costa cafe in the hospital after !!! x

[mariootsi]

So happy to hear your good news! You must feel relieved.

[Teddielottie]

Today went ok and I was in and out of the hospital within one and a half hours . I was the 22nd NHS bowel screening patient there today and that was just mid afternoon ! I found the liquid phosphate enema easy enough to do at home and the scope procedure was tolerable and quick , with just a bit of cramping in the bowel during the procedure. I had Entonox ( inhaled ) when I needed it . A solitary 5mm polyp was removed and sent to labs for pathology . (This hadn’t shown on my previous ct scans ) . He believed it was benign but need to check the type to see if there are likely to be any more higher up ( as the procedure only goes so far up and they only remove polyps under 1cm in this way ) . So will know in a couple of weeks if colonoscopy etc required . Hoping not ... but have tolerated far worse I suppose ! Thanks for your concern x

[Teddielottie]

Just had a letter with the results from my bowel cancer scope, offered by the NHS here to those aged 55 , and it is good news ! ... the solitary 5mm polyp removed during the bowel scope is benign so there is no further follow up from this procedure .

At the age of 60 I will be sent a home testing kit that detects any blood in bowel motions , which is all part of the NHS’s bowel cancer screening programme .

Thanks once again Sandra for your reassurance ...it’s great to have a number of nurses / medically trained people on this site ! ...And it’s one less thing to worry about ! ...Awaiting CT scan results next week ! x