Hi Julie (@jcalkins), Seeing these reports can be very worrisome, and a week is a long time to sit and stew over the results. Most of us have been in that waiting game at some point. Try to take a deep breath and take one step at a time. A PET scan is only one step in the diagnostic process. Not all PET SUV activity is cancer. It could be residual effects from the bronchitis or an infection. Your doctor was being cautious in ordering the PET, and that's a good thing. These reports are very clinical, and only your doctor can accurately interpret them for you.

The SUV indicates the level of hypermetabolic activity. Some, but not all, hypermetabolic cells are cancerous. A PET scan (positron emission tomography) identifies areas of hypermetabolic activity.
For reference, the max SUV on my own PET scan at the time of diagnosis was 11. I knew by this point that it was cancer, the PET was being used to confirm spread to other areas.