I recently had my thyroid removed and when the pathology report came back it had cancer. I then had the iodine radiation. They did the first body scan and there was a spot in my stomach. So I had another, same spot still there. I had a ct scan then and Dr. said that there was a spot but they were waiting to see if the radiation took care of it otherwise we would have to do a PET scan and then a biopsy. He said it wasn t good news or bad news. Is it common to have lymph nodes having this reaction. Haw long does the radiation last. Is this something I should be concerned with? Should I get a second opinion? please help
Hi, Thanks for writing in. It looks like the doctors have found a lymph node in your abdomen and that is visible in your scan. If there is a single lymph node which is relatively small then it will respond better to treatment. A larger lymph node swelling can get difficult. Cancer is a challenging diagnosis and the treatment is guided by the course of the disease. No two patients will have similar disease progress and treatment is individualized. I have seen patients presenting with abdominal lymph nodes in the course of treatment for cancers in the head and neck region. It will help to take radiation as decided by your doctor. Depending on the size, location and appearance, adjuvant chemotherapy might be given depending on initial response to radiation. If possible it is better ti get PET scan done first so that it is confirmed that your nodule is an area of active disease process and to treat it early.