Connect
Spiculated Lung Mass: Monitoring
My husband had an incidental finding of a 3.1 CM right middle lobe mass in Jan. Prior to that, we had the flu over Christmas and he had severe symptoms. He saw the pulmonologist after the finding who stated that she believed it was an infectious process from the flu. He just had a followup scan, which has been 3 months, and the mass is now 2.5 CM, but the report stated it was a slight reduction and this does not rule out neoplasm and needs a PET scan. He's very healthy and has never been a smoker with no symptoms of being sick. If this was cancerous, would it have even reduced in size and if it was an infectious process, would this not have cleared up by now? He follows up with the pulmonologist next week.
Like
Helpful
HugInterested in more discussions like this? Go to the Lung Cancer Support Group.
Connect
Update: We met again with the pulmonologist today and she believes it truly is an infectious process, but just taking longer to clear up. She is repeating a 3 month CT and doesn't believe a PET scan is necessary at this time.
@ashscott1012 , I'm glad you were able to meet with the pulmonologist and get some reassurance. Our lungs can take a long time to heal. I had a fungal nodule identified in early 2024. We treated the fungus with medications, but that 1 cm nodule continues to appear on my quarterly CT scans. It's not growing or shrinking, and I'm convinced that it may just be scar tissue by this time.
Are you and your husband comfortable with this approach to re-scan in 3 months? How are you feeling?
-
Like -
Helpful -
Hug
1 Reaction@ashscott1012 thank you for updating us. if it were me, I would get a second opinion from a different pulmonologist. both the size of the nodule and it being spiculated are concerning. I hope your current pulmonologist is right, but if she isn't, 3 months is a long time to go without starting treatment. when I was first diagnosed, the radiologist said my nodules were stable, but my pulmonologist insisted on a biopsy and she was right. so sometimes doctors see different things looking at the same scans.
@lls8000 I'm feeling a lot of relief and will be able to sleep tonight. We are ok with doing another scan in 3 months. My husband said he's perfectly fine and would rather keep a check unless it increases in size. I'm glad your nodule is doing ok. It very well may be scar tissue. Our bodies seem to do some interesting things.
-
Like -
Helpful -
Hug
1 Reaction@mamajite A second opinion definitely couldn't hurt. I will bring that up to my husband to see if he would be willing to go for one. I'd rather have that sense of peace just to be certain. She showed us both scans and said she does see spiculation with infections at times and is confident that's what he's dealing with since he's also asymptomatic and has put on more weight. I will definitely bring up a second opinion just to be sure. Thank you for the advice!
-
Like -
Helpful -
Hug
3 Reactions@ashscott1012
So glad to hear your good news! I pray that it stays Good! For now, I would just take a deep relaxing breath! I had one CT scan done at a place where I live, last year. It was more convenient not to travel and save some money-I thought. That radiologist read some scar tissue as a new spiculated nodule. It was then sent to my Dr at Mayo and their radiologist compared it to my previous scans and it was just scar tissue that had formed along my surgery line from my previous surgery. This years scan was still clear and I did it straight at Mayo. If you do decide to get a second opinion do it at a reputable cancer center such as Mayo or One on that level. They are the highly sought after specialists and I trust in their opinions over the local scanning places. I will say another prayer for your husband, and again, I hope it all stays well!🙏❤️
-
Like -
Helpful -
Hug
2 Reactions@cmcguire10 Oh wow! I'm so glad it was just scar tissue. I pray his keeps decreasing in size. I'm going to try to talk him into getting a second opinion. Thank you for the prayers!