#28377 11-16-2006 06:01 PM | Joined: Apr 2006 Posts: 794 "Above & Beyond" Member (500+ posts) | OP "Above & Beyond" Member (500+ posts) Joined: Apr 2006 Posts: 794 | I posted this on the General Board, and then I realized that it really belonged here. I will soon have my one-year check-up. I have not had any sort of scan or x-ray this past year. My surgeon has ordered a PET/CT and a liver function blood test. Is this adequate testing for this check-up? I don't know what else he could order, but I need to know that I have had everything possible to look for recurrence or metastacis. What tests do others have at one year, with no obvious evidence of recurrence?
Colleen--T-2N0M0 SCC dx'd 12/28/05...Hemi-maxillectomy, partial palatectomy, neck dissection 1/4/06....clear margins, neg. nodes....no radiation, no chemo....Cancer-free at 4 years!
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#28378 11-16-2006 06:35 PM | Joined: Nov 2005 Posts: 1,128 Patient Advocate (1000+ posts) | Patient Advocate (1000+ posts) Joined: Nov 2005 Posts: 1,128 | I won't have mine for another two months, but my ENT said it would be PET/CT -- I'll have to ask him about liver, esp because I don't know why...
The other test for us irradiated folks is for thyroid function -- According to a study in the documents of this site, as many as 67% will have hypothyroidism within seven years post-radiation (presumed to be conventional radiation; dunno whether IMRT makes a difference).
Age 67 1/2 Ventral Tongue SCC T2N0M0G1 10/05 Anterior Tongue SCC T2N0M0G2 6/08 Base of Tongue SCC T2N0M0G2 12/08 Three partial glossectomy (10/05,11/05,6/08), PEG, 37 XRT 66.6 Gy 1/06 Neck dissection, trach, PEG & forearm free flap (6/08) Total glossectomy, trach, PEG & thigh free flap (12/08) On August 21, 2010 at 9:20 am, Pete went off to play with the ratties in the sky.
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#28379 11-16-2006 11:51 PM | Joined: Nov 2002 Posts: 541 "Above & Beyond" Member (500+ posts) | "Above & Beyond" Member (500+ posts) Joined: Nov 2002 Posts: 541 | Hi August, maybe your cancer is not as advanced as mine because I had more frequent and thorough follow-up tests including CT scan, MRI, ultrasound scan and chest x-ray. I had all these tests on a 6-month basis in the first two years after completing treatment and then annually. Now that I have passed the so-called 5-year milestone, I have shifted myself to an ordinary body check which includes ultrasound scan to major internal organs and chest x-ray. I still have a medical appointment with my oncologist twice a year.
Karen
Karen stage 4B (T3N3M0)tonsil cancer diagnosed in 9/2001.Concurrent chemo-radiation treatment ( XRT x 48 /Cisplatin x 4) ended in 12/01. Have been in remission ever since.
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#28380 11-17-2006 07:36 PM | Joined: Apr 2006 Posts: 794 "Above & Beyond" Member (500+ posts) | OP "Above & Beyond" Member (500+ posts) Joined: Apr 2006 Posts: 794 | I haven't had any scans since before surgery....not even immediately afterward. I find myself thinking that if these scans are clear, then I will feel that he was right, and if they aren't clear, then I will know that my discomfort and lack of confidence were appropriate. I'll know soon enough..I go in 10 days for my scans. My surgeon said after surgery that he "got it all" and that I "no longer have cancer." How's THAT for self-confidence. He said that he was "very aggressive" with his surgery for me, going for a cure rather than taking any chance. I had 1 cm. clear margins and no nodal involvement. Oh, I hope that I have dodged a bullet.
Colleen--T-2N0M0 SCC dx'd 12/28/05...Hemi-maxillectomy, partial palatectomy, neck dissection 1/4/06....clear margins, neg. nodes....no radiation, no chemo....Cancer-free at 4 years!
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#28381 11-26-2006 06:42 AM | Joined: Apr 2006 Posts: 583 "Above & Beyond" Member (500+ posts) | "Above & Beyond" Member (500+ posts) Joined: Apr 2006 Posts: 583 | Hi August,
I hope your year check up turns out OK. You can insist on a check every 6 months if you want.
When I first went in for my tongue, they forgot to schedule me for scan at 6 months. So long story short I had recurrence with in a year.
So now I make sure I am checked and scanned. I even keep track which scan it is. I go in for my year scan in Dec. and I made sure it was the head & chest one. My H&N Dr. said feel free to help keep track of anything & everything. So from now on I do. Others here have said to be pushy if you want, after all it is your life.
So maybe when you go in you can ask about being checked every 6 mo. or what ever you feel more comfortable with.
My husband is nervous about me going from 3 mo. to possible 6 mo. I will find out when I go in. In some ways I am looking to every 6 mo. We have to drive about 170 miles round trip and over a mountain pass for check up.
I still go to regular MD for check on Thyroid every month. They are still trying to get it working right. Will be glad when they do.
Take care Diane
2004 SCC R.tip 1/4 tongue Oct. 2005 R. Neck SCC cancer/Chemo Cisplatin 2x/8wks. Rad. Removed Jugular vein, Lymph gland & some neck muscle. TX finished 1/20/06... B.Cancer 3/29/07 Finished 6/07 Bi-op 7/15/09 SCC in-situ, laser surgery removed from 1st. sight. Right jaw replacement 11/3/14. 9 yrs cancer free as of Jan. 2015
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