Mets Day 950: Today's CT scan was equivocal

Today I had another scan at NIH. The scan was equivocal:

1. The "previously identified pulmonary emboi are less well seen or decreased/resolved since prior study 10/6/2014." Dr. Apolo and her fellow interpreted this to mean that the blood thinners have been working, that I should stay on the Xeralto, and that I should watch for more blood in my urine. The fellow noted that my labs were normal, and that there was no blood detected in my urine sample.

2. The radiologist who read the scan did not document my supraclavicular nodes, which no one could explain. Dr. Apolo personally looked at the images and measured the short axis of my largest node to be 1.42 cm -- less that 10% larger than the 1.3 cm in the last scan, and thus within the range of "stable", but larger nonetheless. But it's still not large enough to enter a clinical trial, so we'll continue to hang loose.

3. The radiologist noted "nonspecific sclerotic densities in the skeletal structures," and questioned whether that was a result of metastatic cancer. Dr. Apolo said that was normal arthritis, and to not worry about it. Most of my prior scans also have noted my changing bone densities.

4. The radiologist also noted "nonspecific hypodensity in the liver, unchanged. The focus is too small to characterize on CT." Prior scans have also suggested there could be small tumor nodes in my liver, but if they are there, it's not large enough to confirm. But tumors in the liver are the most likely place for mets BC to spread. My combined PET-MRI in September did not observe uptake in my liver, suggesting that there was no metastatic activity at that time. But still.

Dr. Apolo scheduled me for a follow up CT scan in two months. She specified that my neck be included next time, since several of my torso scans have managed to barely capture my supraclavicular nodes. I noted that I'd be visiting with Dr. Aragon-Ching next week, and Dr. Apolo said thatthe two of them would continue to consult on my case.

On balance, this scan is "same old, same old." Which just goes to show how inured I have become to the complex world of metastatic cancer. A scan like this probably would freak out someone who previously had a clean bill of health. To me, it's a shrug of the shoulders and on to Chipotle.