Diagnosis/scans speed private/nhs

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Hi all,

Had a routine screening Endoscopic ultrasound for pancreas which is all clear but they picked up a lump mid oesophagus, not good news. He made a crude drawing of a lump on one side and was deliberately vague.

I had been coughing up a bit of mucus for up to 6 months, thought it was an allergy and GP would fob me off, recently an odd taste/bit of heartburn in mornings and I a tight feeling on chest thinking about it but most of the time I feel symptom less except things feel a bit off.

Obviously paranoid since scan.

Does anyone have any tips/ info on how long it might take from getting the CT scan done to the results being in the hand of a consultant and getting some sort of diagnosis/prognosis? I'm worried they will sit on the scan for a fortnight before processing and sending on, then the team might bump me a few meetings and it will be a month before I hear anything. 

Would going private speed this bit up, getting the CT scan and results sent directly to consultant? (I don't want to interpret them just get things moving.)

Issue is timing couldn't be worse, supposed to be exchanging on a house and applying for new schools for the kids ( eldest for secondary) , not sure what will be going on in my life if it is bad news and not sure if better to stay put for treatment or move soon.

No idea what's going on or what to do!

Arrgggghh!

  • Hi

    I feel for you. Things sound hectic for you at the moment without having to wonder if it's a tumour or something else that's benign. If there is any suspicion of it being cancer, I expect/hope that it would be on the urgent list for a CT scan. I'd suggest asking about this. Also did they biopsy the lump they saw?  The CT scan will just say there's something there and the possible size/position of it but not what it is - from my understanding so might be wrong. I'd suggest calling up whoever is dealing with the referrals to CT scan, etc. And I'm assuming to the department that deals with oesophageal/gastric issues and just make sure all the referrals have been made as they should.  If you get no joy, your GP would hopefully be able to help.

    Another option is just going private. I started off with endoscopy with biopsy with the NHS. After the endoscopy when I came out of sedation they were clear that they thought it was a tumour.  The CT scan happened less than a week later. I then opted to go private it was a seamless transition as my surgeon works in private practice as well as in the NHS. So the nurse just referred to him on my behalf. 

    Speed is all important if it is cancer which I'm really hoping it isn't. I really hoping it's benign whatever it is.

    Let us know how you get on. 

    Take care

  • Unfortunately he did ask for it to be within a week but was slow referring me, Ive chased hard though and have a scan tomorrow, more concerned how long radiography will take to send back results. Not insured so private only diagnostic at this stage to speed things up.

  • If they find something they think is/might be cancer then they should rush the reports. 

    Like I say hopefully it's not a tumour but just as a heads up there would need to be further testing  which could be costly.

    I really hope you're not on this journey.  Regardless, you'll find support here. 

    Take care

  • Hi,

    Hopefully the symptoms you are experiencing are not what you fear but you are clearly sufficiently concerned to have made your way to this website (hopefully not via Google - a mistake that I made). When I went to my GP with swallowing difficulties in October 2023, he immediately referred me for an endoscopy but warned me that, even red flagged, this could take a few weeks to arrange. I decided to arrange things privately, saw a consultant five days later and had an endoscopy and CT scan two days after that. The results were back 5 days later confirming my cancer diagnosis. After that, all of my subsequent treatment was on the NHS and things moved on fairly swiftly after that. I feel that going privately initially got my ball rolling a bit quicker than might otherwise have happened and before I got to the stage where swallowing became even more difficult than it already was. If so, it was money well spent in my opinion. Hopefully you will get your CT results back quickly and they will indicate a more benign reason for your symptoms. Good luck CB