I had my first 3-month PET scan to check the progress of my tumors last Monday. As usual, I had what they call “scanxiety” from the day of my scan until today. “For people who have had a cancer diagnosis, undergoing imaging scans can lead to a variety of emotions. It is common to feel stress or worry in the period before a medical test, during the test, and while waiting for test results. We call these feelings “scanxiety.”
My husband and I met with my oncologist to get the results from my PET scan, run my blood panels, and get my Faslodex injections. My blood panels came back with several low levels, meaning they are below the normal range, but as my oncologist explained, my blood looks good for someone on chemotherapy medication, so he is happy with where I am. As far as my PET scan results are concerned, I am happy to say that I have nothing but good news! My tumors have shrunk slightly and have gone from being active to showing decreased activity, meaning they are not growing, and I have no other signs of metastatic disease, so no new tumors have been detected. 🙂 So the meds are working, and we are staying on the current plan.
So we discussed when my next PET scan would be. My oncologist said that the scans are usually in the 3 to the 6-month range. He feels that three months is too early but to wait until six months makes him nervous, so my PET scan will be in 4 months, making it in November.
My husband and I are both so relieved! It has been very difficult to deal with the uncertainty of whether the medications I am on are doing their job or not. Now we know that they are fighting my tumors, killing them little by little and preventing the growth of new tumors.
Wonderful news!! That scanxiety doesn’t get much better (I’ve had one every three months for a little over 5 years) but you will get better at managing it. I also have Adivan to take the edge off if things are particularly difficult. It’s definitely a marathon. ❤️