In January, 2014, I decided to have a scan, as my children's father was dying of lung cancer and I was an ex-smoker, for nine years at the time. The scan was only $49 here at IU Ball Memorial and was like any other ct scan, quick and painless. A small nodule was found in my left lung, and I was encouraged to have a follow up scan in six months.
At that scan my nodule had grown and I was referred to a pulmonologist. A pet scan was ordered and just a faint light was seen in the center, so small they could not do a needle biopsy. I was scheduled to have the top lobe of my lung removed.
Removal was the cure, I didn't need chemo or radiation. I have a yearly ct scan and see my oncologist every six months and my scans and labs all come back normal.
On a side note, because of discovering my cancer, I also discovered I had five heart blockages (I had a heart attack a few weeks after my pre-surgery treadmill) three of which I received stents in. So, I got my cancer and heart both fixed!
