CT or CAT scans (computed axial tomographic scans) are considered to be an ideal means of detecting cancer. CT scans use x-rays to capture detailed images from inside the body. Many radiologists favor the CT scan because of the great clarity in which the tumor image is represented.
Prior to the procedure, some patients are given a contrast agent. The contrast agent is a temporary dye, usually iodine or barium, which can be given orally or injected, as a thirty second process into a vein. Contrast agents help to improve clarity making it easier to distinguishing body parts during the scan.
The CT scan generally takes between 30 minutes to an hour. The patient lies on a motorized table that moves through the scanner as an x-ray machine rotates on an axis around the patient taking an extensive number of images.
Images are then collected and integrated providing doctors with visual data to identify the types of tissues present in areas of concern. The integrated data can be manipulated into 3D representations or viewed in cross sections or slices. One drawback is the data produced by a CT scan only presents in shades of black and white.
Many doctors concur that CT scans provide the best imaging technology for scans of the abdomen and chest – the area’s most prone to the formation of mesothelioma. CT scans enable doctors to identify the stage of a tumor by exposing whether the tumor has spread to nearby tissues, lymph nodes or to distant organs. CT profusion, a recent technique, has been found to be very effective at establishing whether cancer cells have spread throughout the blood stream.
Quick Fact:
CT or CAT scans (computed axial tomographic scans) are considered to be an ideal means of detecting cancer. CT scans use x-rays to capture detailed images from inside the body. Many radiologists favor the CT scan because of the great clarity in which the tumor image is represented.
Prior to the procedure, some patients are given a contrast agent. The contrast agent is a temporary dye, usually iodine or barium, which can be given orally or injected, as a thirty second process into a vein. Contrast agents help to improve clarity making it easier to distinguishing body parts during the scan.
The CT scan generally takes between 30 minutes to an hour. The patient lies on a motorized table that moves through the scanner as an x-ray machine rotates on an axis around the patient taking an extensive number of images.
Images are then collected and integrated providing doctors with visual data to identify the types of tissues present in areas of concern. The integrated data can be manipulated into 3D representations or viewed in cross sections or slices. One drawback is the data produced by a CT scan only presents in shades of black and white.
Many doctors concur that CT scans provide the best imaging technology for scans of the abdomen and chest – the area’s most prone to the formation of mesothelioma. CT scans enable doctors to identify the stage of a tumor by exposing whether the tumor has spread to nearby tissues, lymph nodes or to distant organs. CT profusion, a recent technique, has been found to be very effective at establishing whether cancer cells have spread throughout the blood stream.
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