LDCT: Shameless Plug

[marciem]

Hi there!

For those of you unfamiliar with my saga, Low dose CT Scan for Lung cancer <<< It is outlined here.  

I've just had another six month follow up, and the results again were good.  I still have nodules on my lungs, as always, but they are either small and stable, or some have gone away and others appear, which my doc says is pretty typical for COPD.  NED, my cancer tumor, is dead and scarred and evolving as hoped and expected after SABR treatment for lung cancer.

My main thrust here is:  Get your low dose CT screening scan for lung cancer.     If you are a smoker, or have quit but smoked within the last 15 years, don't wait until you have symptoms.  By the time you have symptoms of lung cancer,  it is often/usually too late for cure, and at best treatment is much more difficult.

LDCT (Low Dose CT) is safe, quick, and relatively reasonably priced.  For those with Medicare, it is covered 100%.  Stanford lists the price as $415 for self-pay, so your cost should be somewhere between slim to none.  It is worth any price to save your life.

Check with your doctor, who must order it.  If they hesitate... beg!   or at least insist.  I had to.  And I'm so glad I did!!

[Gwenivere]

Thanks for the information, M.  I’ve had a lot of CT's and xrays and have worried about the radiation factor.  So good to hear your cancer is gone.  It’s tough knowing our lungs will never be the same.  A high price.  Life is choices and smoking was not a good one and no do overs.  

[marciem]

Thanks Gwenivere

Yes, the radiation factor can be a concern and should be addressed by the physicians of those with frequent exposure.  This IS a lower-dose CT than a regular CT, but it is very sensitive and catches tumors smaller than a regular chest x-ray does.  So there's a trade-off, always.

[JonesCarpeDiem]

Thanks for the reminder.

Grateful for your status.

[elvan]

My annual one is already scheduled in February...it's such a quick procedure.

[Giulia]

Plug away.  It's an important reminder.  Thanks for it.

[Gwenivere]

As luck would have it I had to get one in the ER yesterday because of shortness of breath and feeling faint.  They didn’t have a low dose one but I guess it was a trade off because they were worried about an embolism.  It wasn’t.  2nd time in the ER this week and both docs suspected smoking cessation even with NRT.  Those nicotine receptors are quite demanding on wanting that instant gratification.  40 years of training!  

[marciem]

Good to hear it wasn't an embolism or any critical physical problem, Gwenivere !!

If I were you, I'd check with my Pdoc about possibly adjusting anxiety meds during this transition stage from smoker to nonsmoker.

We had a saying at my old Support Board... "Quittin' ain't for sissies!!"  and that is truly the case!! It is daunting, no matter what way you go about it.  Yes, unlearning 40 years of training, as well as overcoming physical addiction... "Ain't for sissies!"

[Gwenivere]

I did talk to my doc about the anxiety meds and she said I could up them.  I’m so tired and in mind fog as it is.  I hear the first 2 weeks are the toughest and at a month it might start feeling worth it.  Sissies?  This would make a sissy run and curl up in a dark corner.

[CommunityAdmin]

We're hosting a live event about LDCT: Live Event | Lung Cancer Screening Saves Lives .

Please spread the word.