Possible Metastatic Disease.

[ManpreetSingh]

I am writing on behalf of my mom who is the glue that sticks our family together and without her, we would all be lost.

My mom 58 y.o, reasonably healthy besides the asthma which has flared over the past few years.
Long story short, my mom went for a CT Chest uninfused scan.
 

report indicates: No pleural or pericardial fluid is seen.  No large lymph nodes are identified.
Several new pulmonary nodules are present.

largest nodule measures to 5mm on the upper lobe.
4 other nodules found which measure between 2-4 mm.

No aggressive osseous lesion is seen.

The report at the end says: Numerous new pulmonary nodules are seen bilaterally measuring up to 5mm.  The possibility of metastatic disease is raised.
Clinical exam is advised.  additionally CT abdomen and mammogram may be considered.

 

anyone at all seen something similar or can break this down for me?

[LUNGevityKristin]

Hi ManpreetSingh.  I'm not a doctor so I'm not sure what to make of those results.  Does your mom have an appointment scheduled with her doctor to interpret the results?  Was the CT scan because of her asthma or was it related to something else?

[Tom Galli]

Welcome here. Know that I'm not a doctor but I'll tell you what the scan means to me.

You must be summarizing information. Normally, details on size and location of pulmonary nodules are stated in the report. No fluid nor enlarged lymph nodes is a good thing. You tell us of a total of five nodules discovered. Are they contained in one lung? They are all very small, so small that a needle biopsy is likely not possible. Moreover, their size suggests a PET scan might not report accurate results on metastatic disease. From the concluding statement, I deduce there was a previous scan. It suggests nodules in both lungs and further suggests the possibility of metastatic disease but without any explanation of why that possibility is suggested.

Small pulmonary nodules are often very difficult to deduce. They form for many reasons and most are not cancerous. From this information, your mom may likely be asked to wait a period (6 months) and undergo another CT scan to see if any reported nodules enlarge or change shape.

Stay the course.

Tom 

[D iane]

It is telling your Mom that new lung nodules (small ones)  are present - meaning she had a previous scan which they have compared it to.

When was her last mammogram?  Clinical exam is advised.  I would start there.  Rule out breast cancer that could have spread to the lungs.  Also having a CT of her abdomen will show any other "spots" - possibly something is going on there and may have caused the lung nodules.

From what you summarized, it doesn't appear to be lung cancer.  

Metastatic disease means there is a primary tumor somewhere (breast, liver, prostate, etc.) that has spread to another organ in the body.  For example a tumor in the breast that has spread cells to the lung isn't lung cancer, it is still breast cancer that is metastatic to the lung.

Sometimes nodules in the lung are caused by infection.  Has you Mom had a respiratory infection lately? 

I would want to rule out any active disease first, if nothing is found, then a follow up should show these nodules as being stable.  Best wishes to your Mom