The use of a Pet Scan can improve the diagnosis and treatment of certain cancers. Tumor imaging is used quite often to diagnose lung cancer and cervical cancer and to make treatment decisions.
Pet Scan costs can vary, depending on the region and what is to be included in the scanning process.
Lung CancerA PET scan is based on biochemical processes that notify your physician to the presence of disease before any anatomical changes have occurred. In one study it was noted that a Pet scan can accurately distinguish between benign and malignant tumors as small as one centimeter. It has also been determined that this scan can accurately differentiate between limited and extensive disease and it seems to better than CT for making treatment decisions for non-small-cell lung cancer.
Pet scan imaging is being used more and more in lung cancer and is playing a significant role in staging patients, assessing treatment strategies, and monitoring treatment effects.
Cervical CancerWhole body positron emission tomography scans that have been performed three months after cervical cancer patients have completed their therapy helping to determine whether or not these patients are cancer free or require further treatment.
Sometimes, it is difficult to determine if cancer treatment has gotten rid of cervical tumors, because small tumors can be really hard to detect with pelvic exams and the obvious symptoms like leg swelling doesn't occur until tumors are huge.
CT and MRI scans can't tell the difference between tumor tissue and surrounding tissue and there is also no blood test that is indicative of the presence of cervical cancer. A Pap smear can be inaccurate because tissue changes can be caused by radiation therapy.
But cervical tumors glow brightly in Pet scans, which detect emissions from radioactively tagged blood sugar. Tumor tissue traps more of this glucose than normal tissue. So a Pet scan is a more reliable test to monitor cervical cancer patients. If cervical tumors that haven't responded to treatment are present in the Pet Scan, patients can discuss their options for treatment with their physician. The pet scan costs range from $450-$4000 depending on the type of scan.
