Patient History
In April 2010, a 53 year-old male patient was admitted into the hospital for diagnostic testing. He is a cigar smoker and enjoyed an occasional alcoholic beverage. The patient is 68 inches tall and 190 lbs. He lives an active lifestyle but has been complaining of mild sweating, shortness of breath, and chest pain. The patient has a family history of heart disease and diabetes, however patient test results are negative for diabetes. The patient has had a history of heart problems. In February 2007, the patient underwent a quintuple bypass surgery because of multiple blocked arteries. In November 2009, the patient began to experience shortness of breath and chest pain. The patient visited a CareNow center, where he was diagnosed …show more content…
This is to reduce “glucose levels and to reduce serum insulin levels” (Delbeke 2006), which helps with the normal bio-routing of the radiopharmaceutical. The patient is hooked up to an IV line to keep hydrated. He is required to remain supine before and after administration of the radiopharmaceutical because FDG will uptake in active skeletal muscle and cardiac muscle, which can interfere with the study. The patient’s blood-glucose levels are monitored prior to administration. If the levels are too high, the radiopharmaceutical will not bind as well to the tumor cells. The patient’s blood glucose levels appear normal, allowing for the procedure to begin. The patient is instructed to void his bladder prior to imaging to reduce uptake in the pelvic area that could potentially mask a tumor. All metal is removed from the patient to ensure no attenuation will …show more content…
The oncologist orders a biopsy of the tumor to confirm malignancy and the results come back positive. It is now clear that the patient has cancer. The next step is to diagnose the specific type of cancer. The patient undergoes a CT of the lungs to look for tumors in the lungs. The results are normal, ruling out lung cancer. A lymph node biopsy is performed to indicate if the cancer is from the lymphatic system. The results are positive for malignancies. The patient is then taken to surgery, where part of the tumor is excised and biopsied for a second time, revealing lymphoma. A bone marrow aspiration is performed to confirm the suspected diagnosis. The positive results for malignancies in the lymphatic system were important in tying all of the information together. The oncologist orders a second 18F-FDG PET/CT scan to evaluate whether the cancer had metastasized to other parts of the body. The results reveal metastasis to the brain, spine, liver, colon, and kidneys. After reviewing the results of each of the procedures, the final diagnosis is Stage IV T-Cell Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. The most effective way of diagnosing NHL is a biopsy of the excised
In April 2010, a 53 year-old male patient was admitted into the hospital for diagnostic testing. He is a cigar smoker and enjoyed an occasional alcoholic beverage. The patient is 68 inches tall and 190 lbs. He lives an active lifestyle but has been complaining of mild sweating, shortness of breath, and chest pain. The patient has a family history of heart disease and diabetes, however patient test results are negative for diabetes. The patient has had a history of heart problems. In February 2007, the patient underwent a quintuple bypass surgery because of multiple blocked arteries. In November 2009, the patient began to experience shortness of breath and chest pain. The patient visited a CareNow center, where he was diagnosed …show more content…
This is to reduce “glucose levels and to reduce serum insulin levels” (Delbeke 2006), which helps with the normal bio-routing of the radiopharmaceutical. The patient is hooked up to an IV line to keep hydrated. He is required to remain supine before and after administration of the radiopharmaceutical because FDG will uptake in active skeletal muscle and cardiac muscle, which can interfere with the study. The patient’s blood-glucose levels are monitored prior to administration. If the levels are too high, the radiopharmaceutical will not bind as well to the tumor cells. The patient’s blood glucose levels appear normal, allowing for the procedure to begin. The patient is instructed to void his bladder prior to imaging to reduce uptake in the pelvic area that could potentially mask a tumor. All metal is removed from the patient to ensure no attenuation will …show more content…
The oncologist orders a biopsy of the tumor to confirm malignancy and the results come back positive. It is now clear that the patient has cancer. The next step is to diagnose the specific type of cancer. The patient undergoes a CT of the lungs to look for tumors in the lungs. The results are normal, ruling out lung cancer. A lymph node biopsy is performed to indicate if the cancer is from the lymphatic system. The results are positive for malignancies. The patient is then taken to surgery, where part of the tumor is excised and biopsied for a second time, revealing lymphoma. A bone marrow aspiration is performed to confirm the suspected diagnosis. The positive results for malignancies in the lymphatic system were important in tying all of the information together. The oncologist orders a second 18F-FDG PET/CT scan to evaluate whether the cancer had metastasized to other parts of the body. The results reveal metastasis to the brain, spine, liver, colon, and kidneys. After reviewing the results of each of the procedures, the final diagnosis is Stage IV T-Cell Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. The most effective way of diagnosing NHL is a biopsy of the excised