How accurate is a bone scan for prostate cancer?
In patients with biochemical recurrence of prostate cancer, 11C-acetate has shown high concordance with bone scans with a sensitivity of 90 % and specificity of 96 % [42].
What diseases can a bone scan detect?
A bone scan can help detect the following conditions:
- benign or cancerous bone tumors.
- secondary (metastatic) cancer to the bone.
- non-Hodgkin lymphoma.
- tumors in the soft tissue.
- arthritis or joint inflammation.
- osteomalacia, or bone softening, due to vitamin D deficiency.
- osteomyelitis, or bone infection.
Why would a urologist order a bone scan?
A bone scan can help show if cancer has reached the bones. For this test, you are injected with a small amount of low-level radioactive material, which settles in damaged areas of bone throughout the body.
Why would a doctor order a full body bone scan?
Your doctor may order a bone scan if you have unexplained skeletal pain, a bone infection or a bone injury that can’t be seen on a standard X-ray. A bone scan can also be an important tool for detecting cancer that has spread (metastasized) to the bone from the tumor’s original location, such as the breast or prostate.
What does degenerative uptake mean on a bone scan?
In the case of the bone scan, there will be “uptake” anywhere there is new bone formation. This is not always 100% cancer. Uptake will also show where there is degenerative disease, previous fractures and sometimes arthritis.
Can bone mets be missed on bone scan?
In one patient, radial bone metastasis was overlooked in a bone scintigraphy but a bone radiography performed on the same day revealed the metastasis.
What does uptake on a bone scan indicate?
Detection of incidental soft tissue uptake: may represent occult malignancy such breast cancer, malignant pleural effusion, soft tissue sarcoma, or metastatic disease in the liver. Identification of the presence of kidneys on every bone scan; if the kidneys are not seen, a superscan should be suspected.
When to have a bone scan for prostate cancer?
THE “NEW” PROSTATE CANCER INFOLINK. A bone scan may be considered important in any patient with a Gleason score of 7 or higher who appears to be at high risk of bony metastatic disease. A bone scan is also indicated for any patient with prostate cancer who has symptoms suggesting bony metastases.
Are there any nonosseous abnormalities on a bone scan?
In certain conditions, nonosseous structures other than the urinary tract are seen on the bone scan. For example, there may be localized muscle uptake, such as myositis ossificans, or localization in a pleural effusion. Such serendipitous findings may constitute welcome diagnostic information.
How are bone scans used to diagnose metastatic cancer?
Bone scan is one of the most common and oldest examinations among all nuclear medicine procedures. It is used in the evaluation of benign bone disease like infection/inflammation and also is the standard of care for evaluating metastatic disease in the breast, prostate, and lung cancer.[1]
Why is the specificity of a bone scan low?
Though the reported sensitivity of bone scan is high, its specificity is low due to increased metabolic activity seen in benign disease such as trauma, infection, inflammation, and degenerative joint diseases. Widespread involvement usually suggests metastatic disease. A single focal lesion is almost always a cause of dilemma in reporting.