ct scan recently

[Granny333]

Hello, Happy 4th.. Dr. Office called , said scan looked good. However I looked at results and it says diverticulosis and I have cysts on pancreas. Why would they tell me ok?

[Aprilfoolz1]

Hi Granny , I've had diverticulosis show up once in awhile on a CT and I've had random cysts show up somewhere as well. I also have had signs of esophagus reflux show up but I don't have any pain there . My onc has not considered these things cancer and isn't concerned as I don't have diverticulitis or reflux and I think cysts must look different than tumors metabolically so they aren't concerned .

Congratulations on a good scan. You should call or message your oncologist if you have concerns.

Happy 4th !

[Kerryd22]

I have diverticulitis too but that’s not uncommon and it’s not an issue if you’re symptom free. The pancreas cysts could be nothing as I had a polyp in my gallbladder but it wasn’t considered a problem. When you have a restage scan for cancer the oncologist is looking at the results of your cancer. Anything else that’s asymptomatic is of no interest to them. I did have a ct scan one day that alarmed the radiologist and he reported it immediately and I was phoned to alert me and the oncologist booked a referral to a specialist who removed my gallbladder with days.

If there was any concern outside the cancer sites the radiologists would report it. And the oncologist would refer you but otherwise they don’t.

[Iwasborntodothis in reply to Kerryd22]

I've had divetriculitus show up on every scan - doc says no big deal but I do have a horror story. I had a PET scan on a Friday afternoon when both my doc and his NP were off - I knew the scan was going to be good cancer-wise because I got an unauthorized thumbs up from the tech - so you can imagine my surprise when the on-call doc who read my scan on Friday evening called and said I needed an emergency CT scan because I had a perforated bowel. I am a rules follower - I argued with him about the diverticulitus and I had no symptoms but he insisted that I go to the ER ASAP. What a nightmare - big city Friday night ER. We were there for 14 hours and guess what? No perforated bowel. I was furious as was my husband...my oncologist was too. They preach to me all the time to stay out of the hospital and work with the cancer center first because of all of the infection risks then the on-call guy over reacts....so lesson learned. Make sure you share this with the person who interprets your scans because none of needs to be in the ER without a very compelling reason.

Thanks for letting me highjack this and vent.

[Kerryd22 in reply to Iwasborntodothis]

Years ago a friend travelled to America to visit his sister and he experienced stomach pains -probably through the highly spiced food he’d been eating - but it was so bad he went to Emergency and from there it was a big rush into emergency surgery where most of his bowel was removed. They didn’t even do the preparation work so he ended up with an infection from bowel contents spilling out and he spent weeks in hospital recovering before he could return to Australia where his doctor was horrified to find out that the ED doctor had overreacted to long standing diverticulitis and diagnosed bowel cancer instead. Oops. He had to wear the stoma for six months and there was some uncertainty about whether there was enough bowel left to reconnect it. There was but only just. I’m sure the ED doctor meant well but I don’t really understand why the bowel surgeon didn’t pull up and think about the need for speed vs the need to be sure surgical intervention was needed. 🤔. It’s an object lesson though because the patient should have asked those questions himself.

[Nocillo in reply to Iwasborntodothis]

I went to the ER once for vertigo and the doctor said I also had walking pneumonia. I did not. Where do they come up with this stuff?🤷‍♀️

[Kayaker82]

Hello! Diverticulosis showed up on my scans too as did cysts on my kidneys. When you have as many scans as we all do, you find things you would have never known about otherwise. I took the information about diverticulosis and looked into a helpful diet for that condition and am glad for that information. One of my first scans showed kidney stones and because of that I was referred for lithotripsy and did not have to experience the pain of passing them. Our journey is unique for sure! Hope you’re getting some comfort from our responses.

[Godbeforme in reply to Kayaker82]

you are so right, Kayaker, about finding things you otherwise wouldn't know about on scans. my hubby found colon cancer when he had a CT to check out his abdominal aneurysm! always read ALL the remarks, it spoke of the colon wall looking thickened and I asked his doctor what does that mean and she said, well we had better do a colonoscopy and so he had a pre-colonoscopy procto and they couldn't even get the probe in the tumor was so big! otherwise, it was overlooked, so always ask questions and mainly, read those RESULTS! Almost everyone has their results available online these days, at least they SHOULD be. Drs. are limited as to how much time they can spend reading results. <3

[Andersl]

Its my experience that oncologists and their teams report in terms of cancer findings. So, if for instance your cancer is stable then the term ",ok" is acceptable. Cysts around the body are not unusual, nor is diverticulitis particularly as we get older. If you are having symptoms go to see your GP.

I hope this helps xx

[Granny333 in reply to Andersl]

Yes all answers are helping . Thank you so much 😊

[Mcangel11]

Almost everyone has diverticulosis( little pockets in intestines.. and cysts can be found anywhere....they say your scan looks good because no metastisis..and none of it dangerous! Hope that helps ( nurse 40 years) Congratulations on your scans waiting for my results also!!!

Roxanne

[Sharon0122]

I read once in my scans I had diverticulitis too, only once. My thought it depends on who reads the scan. I had a friend when I lived in England and there were so many things she could not eat.

Best to you! Happy 4th of July!

[PJBinMI]

I agreed with what others here have said about our oncs focusung on cancer when they look at scan results. You can ask your primary care doctor to look at the scan results and see what that doc has to say. No cancer progression is always great news!

[Granny333 in reply to PJBinMI]

Yes you are so right. Thank you

[mariootsi]

Congratulations on a good scan. I have diverticulitis too. I think if they haven't found cancer they say it's ok. Relax and enjoy!

[Granny333]

You are so right. I am so thankful for the cancer not spreading . Thank you 🙏🏻