Waiting CT chest scan result

hi joe sorry you have found your self here. my dad past away from lung cancer. had not smoked for 12 yr. was told by doctor that it can take 14 yr to grow.  also remember Roy castle he never smoked but spent a lot of time in clubs. think the thought of cancer puts us all down takes a long time to come to terms. hoping you receive good reports.  once all your results are in your team that will be set up will come up with a plan hopefully a good one for you take care

Thank you Derek. I hope so too but all the symptoms suggest otherwise just now. I just wish I had never started to smoke but lots of people smoked back in the 70s and 80s. There will probably be an increase in lung cancer cases as we reach our 60s and 70s.The waiting doesn't help and has completely stressed me out.

Joe

Hi Joe

Everything you are feeling right now is completely normal. The not knowing is really scary. You say you are on blood thinners, and I wonder if the blood in your mouth when you wake is actually from your gums. I know when I was on blood thinners my gums would bleed terribly. Just a thought. 

Please stay away from google it is so outdated. Hope you do not have to wait too long for your ct results.

like i said joe my dad died after about 6 month they never tried anything.  that was 1990. thing have moved on a lot. i smoked for 55yr. so new what it was when cough started. have now been having treatment for 2.5 yr and have never felt better

Hi Joe and Welcome

Well to lighten to mood here.

Firstly, whether people who smoked or not get lung cancer to me is completely irrelevant. I hate the stigma attached to it. There are many other cancers that have risk factors that people choose to do, yet NONE of them are judged the same way as anyone with lung cancer that has smoked. So put that thought away, it can't be changed now and beating yourself up will not help.

It is good to hear that you recognised potential symptoms and have sought medical help. The tests have been done and if it is or anything to worry about, it is in motion to start treating you accordingly.

The test phase is the most worrying time and you are entering a world which seems like a foreign language, a steep learning curb and the stuff on the internet is full of nonsense. So please only stick to proper cancer sites like this one for any research.

Yes your previous medical history could also be something that they want to investigate too. The only confirming answer will be those CT results.

Now, when we have tests, I think we assume we are told straight away if it is cancer or not. However, this is often not the case. Most will not confirm a cancer diagnosis until a biopsy is taken. This will be your next step after the results, if they feel it needs investigating further. Along with likely a PET scan which will scan the whole body. Once they have this, they will be able to tell you if it is cancer, the type you have and the stage that you have.

Once they know this, then there will be a plan devised just for you on which there are many treatments out there for it. It is very rare that they cannot do anything. Even if it is a later stage, there are many treatments, There are a fair few knocking about that were diagnosed at stage 4 and are here having been diagnosed many years later. 

Please do not think all is lost. I remember feeling the exact same way when I was diagnosed just over a year ago. I have just had my second line of treatment for it and still working and doing most things I always did.

We are all here for you every step of the way, we all needed a guiding hand at the start too. 

Hi Chelle,

I used to think that but definitely not from my gums despite the blood thinners. Dr Google is so frightening, I am looking at 3-6 weeks to live!

Thanks

Joe

Joe

Don't make me launch your broadband box out the window!

Hi Gina,

Thank you so much for taking the time to respond to my fears and for outlining what could happen next. You are right about smoking and we feel a certain guilt as if we are solely.to blame for this awful disease. I am glad to hear that your treatment is still working. It is so refreshing to meet so many nice folk on here.

Joe

Also, if you click on people's names above their posts, it will take you to their profile. Most of us fill these in with a brief timeline of our story. You will realise just how long some of us have been about here!

I am glad to hear you are doing well Derek-the stats for lung cancer have not really improved as much as other types of cancer sadly.

Best wishes 

Joe