Hello to my OCF crew.

I am approaching my one-year mark in March. I was diagnosed on 3/16/11 and had surgery on 3/28/11. My next follow up with my surgical oncologist is March 2nd. The only scan I have had since my surgery was back in August of 2011...it was a CT scan with contrast. This was planned for September, but it was moved up because I had found an enlarged node.

On December 29th, I found another enlarged node, virtually identical to the other one in every way. My SO checked it during a routine follow up and did not seemed concerned, in fact, he said that I'm doing great. Good news to hear, but this node has me going a bit crazy at times. I try not to palpate it too often because it's small and I don't want to over analyze it...is it smaller...is it bigger. There's no sense in doing that.

My SO said that after my next visit, the frequency of visits will drop to every 8-10 weeks. Back in August, he said he would probably scan me again in 6 months, which would bring me close to my anniversary. I forgot to ask him if he planned on scanning me at my next visit. So, after all of my babbling here, my main question is what kind of scan am I likely to get? Note that I only had surgery...no chemo or rads, but I do have that enlarged node for over a month now. I've never had a PET. If I need a PET, approximately how long do they last and is the tube/scanner "open" like a CT or is it a narrow tube like an MRI? I will need to be sedated if the latter is the case.

I know these are questions I should have asked my doctor, but I didn't write them on my usual list in my notebook because I was so concerned about other things at the visit. I don't want to call the office to ask these questions, because I can wait until March 2nd to do that. He always encourages me to call, but I thought I'd get input/your experiences here first before I decide to call.

I'd appreciate any experience/knowledge that you'd like to share.

Thanks so much!
Kerri