Give and get support around quitting
I hope everyone does this. Insurance covers it if not it’s only 50-60 dollars! That’s five pack of cigarettes in some states. And what a great way to spend the money you have saved. Get a low dose CT scan of your chest. Any doctor can order it. It is an early screening of lung cancer. Please do it if you haven’t already. Many of my friends would have been saved had they done this!
I agree! And I always wonder why this is not offered more to smokers or people who have quit. My doctor is all about "preventive medicine" which I don't TOTALLY agree with BUT...I would agree more if it made more sense.
For example....every person over the age of 60 is encouraged to get a colonoscopy. Great. But, I have a zero history of colon cancer in my family and a life style of eating things which also sort of make this cancer less likely for me ( YES--I KNOW IT IS STILL POSSIBLE)......but, when I tell doctors I smoked for many,many years....why do they say...."Glad you quit. How about a colonoscopy? But not one ever offered a low dose CT scan or ever even spoke about it. I learned of it here at EX. Many things in the medical world really frustrate me to no end.
Anyway---thanks for posting this blog. It's good for us to remember to do this every once in awhile for members who are not aware. I know some of the Community have not always found it so easy to get a doctor to order one........
Great advice, I learned about it here and asked my pulmonologist to order one the first time I saw her, I go annually now.
Ellen
Great advice...~ Colleen 417 DOF
Colleen, did you ever follow-up on this?
Barb
This is a great idea.
I will ask my doctor about it.
Thanks.
Keep the quit
PT
Bravo!!!! I am thankful I had a blood dr. Request it because that is how I found out I had copd....my blood work was off so my gp sent me to him...I call it a God thing, I quit the day after I found out and although you can’t fix it, quitting smoking is the only way to slow it down....please pass the word to get it if you’re a long term smoker...blessings
Every smoker and ex-smoker should have this done yearly. My next one is scheduled for February!
I'm so glad you posted this!! I was just getting ready and formulating my thoughts, since I am pretty much a Poster Child for the LDCT... I had to push my PCP to order one, and it found a nodule which three months later had grown, and was diagnosed Lung cancer. The whole saga is outlined here:
Just yesterday I saw my doc at Stanford for results of a follow up PET and CT that I had, and all seems to be well. My tumor is scar tissue now (I had SABR (stereotactic ablative body radiation) rather than surgery because of my severe COPD)... and a new nodule area that was of concern last September, while it is still there, has not grown and may be somewhat smaller (I haven't read the reports yet, some glitch in getting it to MyChart at Stanford), but anyways... He has put me back on a 6 month follow up (rather than 3) and NO PET scan this next time, which is the first since my treatment.
God is Good, and get your LDCT! If you smoke or have quit... this can save your life! It surely did mine .
Just curious, and not being a nitwit, I'm asking honestly, why would you do this?
Donna
Day 403