Are there any risks of having a PET scan? PET scans are very safe. There are no side effects associated with the radioactive tracers, which only remain in your body for a short time.
The injected radioactive chemicals have a very short lifespan and are removed from the body fairly quickly. Sometimes, you will be advised to avoid close contact with babies or pregnant women in the few hours after your scan.
Temporary side effects – The iodine-based contrast dye used in a PET CT scan can cause temporary side effects. Some PET scan side effects are diarrhea, nausea, etc., which eventually fade within a day.
For your PET scan, a radioactive drug called a tracer will be injected into a vein. Because the amount of radiation you're exposed to in the tracer is small, the risk of negative effects from the radiation is low. But the tracer might: Expose your unborn baby to radiation if you are pregnant.
You shouldn't experience any side effects after having a PET scan and can usually go home the same day. The results of your scan won't usually be available on the same day.
Will I be radioactive? Because we use a radioactive tracer, you will be slightly radioactive for the next 24 hours after your scan. After 24 hours all the radioactivity will be gone. Once you leave the imaging center, you may resume all normal activities including holding children.
Drinking plenty of fluids after your scan helps to flush the radiotracer out of your system. The radioactive tracer gives off very small levels of radiation that go away very quickly. As a precaution, you should avoid close contact with pregnant women, babies and young children for 6 hours after the scan.
If it looks as though there are still swollen (enlarged) lymph nodes after treatment, a PET-CT scan can help show if this is due to scar tissue or there are still active lymphoma cells.
The Day Before Your PET/CT Scan
Please avoid all forms of strenuous exercise and/or physical activity for 24 hours prior to your appointment. Avoid all caffeine and de-caffeinated beverages for 24 hours prior to exam. It is important that you stay well hydrated.
You may need a PET scan to find out if you have cancer. If you've already been diagnosed with cancer, you may need this test to see if your cancer treatment is working. A PET scan also helps diagnose and monitor heart and brain diseases.
The radiotracer becomes quickly less radioactive over time and will usually be passed out of your body naturally within a few hours. Drinking plenty of fluid after the scan can help flush it from your body.
PET scans are very safe. There are no side effects associated with the radioactive tracers, which only remain in your body for a short time.
After a PET-CT scan
Drink lots of water. It helps wash any leftover radioactive substance and dye out of your body.
Suggested foods
Non-breaded beef, chicken, turkey, fish, pork, lamb, ham (without honey), hot dogs, lunch meats, fish, shellfish and eggs.
Not all cancers show up on a PET scan. PET scan results are often used with other imaging and lab test results. Other tests are often needed to find out whether an area that collected a lot of radioactive material is non-cancerous (benign) or cancerous (malignant).
Can I brush my teeth before a PET/CT scan? Normal brushing without swallowing mouthwash or toothpaste within the four hour preparation timeframe will have no effect on the outcome of your PET/CT scan.
You will be asked to eat a low carbohydrate diet. Foods that can be eaten include: meat, hard cheese, tofu, eggs, butter and vegetables with no starch. Some foods that are NOT allowed include: cereal, pasta, milk, breads and other sugars.
You can do normal activities after the scan. This includes driving. The staff will tell you to drink several glasses of water. This helps wash the radioactive substance and dye out of your body.
This type of scan help determine whether a smaller spot is cancerous or benign, as cancerous lesions are much more likely to light up on a PET scan than benign spots or scar tissue.
The only way to know whether there is cancer in a lymph node is to do a biopsy. Doctors may remove lymph nodes or take samples of one or more nodes using needles.
If a PET scan is not funded by Medicare, patients have to pay between $800 and $1000.
In general, PET scans may be used to evaluate organs and/or tissues for the presence of disease or other conditions. PET may also be used to evaluate the function of organs, such as the heart or brain. The most common use of PET is in the detection of cancer and the evaluation of cancer treatment.
The researchers found that the same thing happens with caffeine: The heart beats faster when you drink coffee, just as it does when you exercise. This is a problem, because an increase in the FDG in the heart seen on a scan makes it more difficult to see lesions close to the heart, says Dr. Osman.
PET/CT SCAN DIET INSTRUCTIONS
Avoid food and drinks that contain sugar or carbohydrates for at least 24 hours before your scan. This will help to make sure that your images are of the best quality and help prevent having to reschedule your scan because of a blood sugar that is too high.