[Tom74]

CT scan after 3 months of treatment?

by Tom74 on Mon Nov 02, 2015 4:21 pm

Has anyone had a CT scan after three months of treatment? My oncologist says it is not necessary as the blood work up gives them all the info they need to determine how the body is doing against it's fight against myeloma?

Thanks

[Little Monkey]

Re: CT scan after 3 months of treatment?

by Little Monkey on Mon Nov 02, 2015 10:58 pm

Uh, are you being seen at all by a myeloma specialist ?

While I am not a doctor, I do believe that MRI, CT, and PET scans all have a place in neoplasm surveillance (e.g., PET scan for nonsecretory myeloma).

[Tom74]

Re: CT scan after 3 months of treatment?

by Tom74 on Tue Nov 03, 2015 9:30 am

Yes, seeing a medical oncologist. Will see him again next Thursday and ask again.

Thanks for the reply

Tom74

[NStewart]

Re: CT scan after 3 months of treatment?

by NStewart on Tue Nov 03, 2015 12:35 pm

Tom74-

Being a medical oncologist does not necessarily mean that your oncologist is a myeloma specialist. By definition a medical oncologist treats people with all kinds of cancer diagnoses. A myeloma specialist is a medical oncologist who only treats people with myeloma and usually does research in the field of myeloma.

If you haven't consulted with a myeloma specialist, I would suggest that you do. The specialist doesn't have to be the oncologist that you see on a regular basis, but usually will consult with your local oncologist to coordinate your care.

All the best,
Nancy in Phila

[Little Monkey]

Re: CT scan after 3 months of treatment?

by Little Monkey on Tue Nov 03, 2015 2:46 pm

I agree with Nancy, you should be seeing a myeloma specialist, even if it is just to advise your oncologist how to proceed. Myeloma and its cousins are a bit of a different breed.

[sunshne954]

Re: CT scan after 3 months of treatment?

by sunshne954 on Thu Nov 05, 2015 1:50 pm

I never had a CT scan at all for multiple myeloma. My doctor was a myeloma specialist as was the one I saw for my stem cell transplant. So no CT, no PET, and no MRI. Only bloodwork.

Patty

[Eric Hofacket]

Re: CT scan after 3 months of treatment?

by Eric Hofacket on Thu Nov 05, 2015 5:21 pm

I believe with any imaging a medical provider should always be able to tell the patient why the imaging is being done, what the goal and purpose is. I believe it is common practice for all of those with active myeloma at initial diagnosis to at least have a whole body x-ray done to assess bone and skeletal damage, and MRI would could even be better but much more costly. Did you have any of this done?

A CT scan will have a higher, often significantly higher radiation dose than other imaging techniques. I do not believe they should be done unless there is a sound reason to do so. I would be cautious about pushing a medical provider for imaging like a CT scan without specific reason such as you feel you may have bone damage. If you interested in learning more about using imaging to track how well your body is doing against myeloma do some research into PET scan, a CT scan is not very useful for tracking disease progression.

I am not a doctor but I believe you oncologist is providing sound reasoning and is consistent with my own treatment experience.

[Multibilly]

Re: CT scan after 3 months of treatment?

by Multibilly on Thu Nov 05, 2015 6:06 pm

Tom,

This is a very good article by Dr. Kapoor on the various imaging modalities (including pros and cons) that can be used with multiple myeloma patients at various stages of their disease.

https://myelomabeacon.org/forum/pet-scans-for-multiple-myeloma-t3687.html

[JWOE43]

Re: CT scan after 3 months of treatment?

by JWOE43 on Tue Jul 17, 2018 1:30 pm

I have PET scans every 3 months. My blood work is drawn every 3 months as well. Between both, we have a working knowledge of progression of lesions, or if they are stable. This is not able to be seen through blood work alone. My wife and I weighed the pro's and con's of the radiation levels introduced into my body through the scans, but have found that it was worth it. They were able to detect new lesions, and then I was able to discuss treatment options with my radiation oncologist, and also my myeloma oncologist.

I was diagnosed in February of 2015, and I have only had radiation treatments up until this coming Friday, where I am going to start a Velcade, dexamethasone, cyclophosphamide treatment. 1x per week injection, pill, pill.

I would still think it worth discussing with your oncologist and doing what you feel is in your best interest. I can say that each PET scan I do is close to $6K, but fortunately my insurance covers a majority of the cost, but that is a huge factor in determining a direction.