Lung Cancer - If caught in early stages?!
Question: Lung Cancer - If caught in early stages.?
A CT scan showed a pulmonary nodule on my grandmothers lung by accident while looking for something else not related. They want to wait 6 months before doing another scan to evaluate the growth of the nodule to see if its cancerous. Isn't that too long to wait.?.? If it is cancer and its caught in this stage (its les then an inch and surrounded by normal tissue) is there a good chance of beating it.? Health Question & Answer
Answers:
If your grandmother was not a heavy smoker or had not smoked in a very long time then she is getting proper care and advice. Usually these accidentally found lesions are evidence of a long gone infection or some other benign issue like an old granuloma (small bump of some type).
Even if it is stage one lung cancer and they remove the encapsulated tumor after the next CT then her survival chances are excellent.
At this point in time the dangers from a biopsy would far outweigh the dangers of just watching the lesion to see if it grows any.Health Question & Answer
Even if it is stage one lung cancer and they remove the encapsulated tumor after the next CT then her survival chances are excellent.
At this point in time the dangers from a biopsy would far outweigh the dangers of just watching the lesion to see if it grows any.Health Question & Answer
Its a good idea to wait at this point because the most effective way to get rid of cancer is to remove it surgically while it is still encapsulated in a nodule. However, in the lungs, this type of surgery is also a risk, so its a good idea to avoid surgery if it isn't needed.
There is an alternative to waiting. The docs can insert a needle to get a tissue sample, as long as the nodule is large enough to sample. If your grandmother is worried about waiting, she could ask the doc about getting a biopsy. Health Question & Answer
There is an alternative to waiting. The docs can insert a needle to get a tissue sample, as long as the nodule is large enough to sample. If your grandmother is worried about waiting, she could ask the doc about getting a biopsy. Health Question & Answer
You and your Grandmother should be asking these questions of the doctors.Health Question & Answer
Very good chance.Health Question & Answer