Hey..... im a newbie..... i got dx with crohns back in june and ive had 24 ct scans in the past year. They are afraid of radation cancer. Has anyone else experinced this?
-
Welcome to Crohn's Forum, a support group for people with all forms of IBD. While this community is not a substitute for doctor's advice and we cannot treat or diagnose, we find being able to communicate with others who have IBD is invaluable as we navigate our struggles and celebrate our successes. We invite you to join us.
Need help
- Thread starter cristi21crohns
- Start date
Cristi,
Welcome to the forum. It sounds like you have been through alot if you are having that many scans. Why are you having so many ct. scans? did the doctor chose that over a colonoscopy?
You should not have any more if possible. We had one when we went to the E.R. and our GI immediately mentioned it is not a good idea.
What type of Crohns do you have and how are you doing?
Welcome to the forum. It sounds like you have been through alot if you are having that many scans. Why are you having so many ct. scans? did the doctor chose that over a colonoscopy?
You should not have any more if possible. We had one when we went to the E.R. and our GI immediately mentioned it is not a good idea.
What type of Crohns do you have and how are you doing?
I was dx in june of 2012 at the begining in the 2012 they could find out what was wrong i had my first ten ct scans between jan to march. They finally found crohns and cant get it under control ummm. It is serv. Crohns when i flare up i end up in the hosital through the er and the first thing they do is a ct scan i tell them how many i hav had but the still do them
You have the right to refuse the Ct Scan. Our daughters scans did not show her flare at all.... there are other tests they can run.
This forum has so much information on it. You can read and research and we are here to give you all the support we can.
Do you have a good Gastro-interologist? Have you had stool cultures done? TB test? CBC?
The flares are horrible, I am sorry you have to deal with those all the time. It took a year to get my daughter, age 14 under control.
She was in a lot of pain too.
Have you been on Prednisone? It took 2 long doses of Prednisone, while other medications were taking effect before we found the right combination of medications.
for her it is Asacol, Remicade, cortifoam, and periods of antibiotics.
Do you bleed, have diarhea? fevers? lost weight?
The E.R. is there if you need it, but I dont want to ever take my daughter again. It is not the same as having a GI helping you with your treatments.
take care and let us know what treatments you are currently on..
This forum has so much information on it. You can read and research and we are here to give you all the support we can.
Do you have a good Gastro-interologist? Have you had stool cultures done? TB test? CBC?
The flares are horrible, I am sorry you have to deal with those all the time. It took a year to get my daughter, age 14 under control.
She was in a lot of pain too.
Have you been on Prednisone? It took 2 long doses of Prednisone, while other medications were taking effect before we found the right combination of medications.
for her it is Asacol, Remicade, cortifoam, and periods of antibiotics.
Do you bleed, have diarhea? fevers? lost weight?
The E.R. is there if you need it, but I dont want to ever take my daughter again. It is not the same as having a GI helping you with your treatments.
take care and let us know what treatments you are currently on..
I have had stool samples done havent had a tb since last jan. Have cbc constally my vains are give out im on remicade and imuran and i do have a good gi but its taking a long time to get it under control its been two week since my last flare up though
I sent this as a PM to you since I saw you posted in the live chat while I was away but figured I'd post it in your thread as well so others can see it.
Welcome to the forum!
CT scans and X-rays put you at a higher risk of developing cancer. There isn't a study that shows how bad it can be long term though as CT machines are still fairly new relatively and all of us who have had a lot of CT scans really wont know how badly it will affect us just yet.
"CT scans do expose you to more radiation than regular x-rays. Having many x-rays or CT scans over time may increase your risk for cancer. However, the risk from any one scan is small. You and your doctor should weigh this risk against the benefits of getting a correct diagnosis for a medical problem." http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/e...cle/003789.htm
CT scans can have the radiation level adjusted so you can request the lowest setting needed.
I don't see why you would need 24 CT scans honestly but in the future you can opt for an MRI or MRE as they don't use any radiation yet also give a very detailed picture to help with both treatment and diagnosis.
To add to that though you can also do a Pill Cam and even a small bowel follow through with x-ray will have WAY less radiation than a CT scan.
CT scans are often used automatically without a second thought so learn how to say no and try to suggest something else. Have your GI run some real tests and if a CT is all they can think of then find another GI. If you're doing the ER/hospital route, you can request an MRI or small bowel follow through (again, much less radiation than a CT).
Welcome to the forum!
CT scans and X-rays put you at a higher risk of developing cancer. There isn't a study that shows how bad it can be long term though as CT machines are still fairly new relatively and all of us who have had a lot of CT scans really wont know how badly it will affect us just yet.
"CT scans do expose you to more radiation than regular x-rays. Having many x-rays or CT scans over time may increase your risk for cancer. However, the risk from any one scan is small. You and your doctor should weigh this risk against the benefits of getting a correct diagnosis for a medical problem." http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/e...cle/003789.htm
CT scans can have the radiation level adjusted so you can request the lowest setting needed.
I don't see why you would need 24 CT scans honestly but in the future you can opt for an MRI or MRE as they don't use any radiation yet also give a very detailed picture to help with both treatment and diagnosis.
To add to that though you can also do a Pill Cam and even a small bowel follow through with x-ray will have WAY less radiation than a CT scan.
CT scans are often used automatically without a second thought so learn how to say no and try to suggest something else. Have your GI run some real tests and if a CT is all they can think of then find another GI. If you're doing the ER/hospital route, you can request an MRI or small bowel follow through (again, much less radiation than a CT).
Yes i bleed yes on diarhee yes on weight loss..... and i have been on predisone many time they just cant get my meds right
Do you know where your Crohn's is located? You might be able to take Entocort (also a steroid but with fewer side effects) unless you're disease is located in the lower regions of the colon. Entocort doesn't reach that far down but it works great in the ileum region.
Its in the bottom part of my stomach, small intestines, and colon..... i was on entcort it didnt work for me :-(
Yes just recently got off of it he had me on entocort until the imuran kicked in