worried about scan

[jessical]

I am 18 I had a CT scan done on my head and it came back normal But i have read articles on the internet that said CT scans can cause brain tumors and brain damage i am now worried Should i be?

[nomorepanic]

No - you would have to have loads and loads of CT scans for the radiation to effect you in any way.

You are fine.

[countrygirl]

Nicola is right it is the cumulative effect of CT scans that are the danger. If this is your first then no worries but as you go through life if CT is offered then always ask if there is an alternative as CT scans give a very large dose of radiation compared to normal x rays. For example a full body CT ( which is offered by private companies only) gives you a dose comparable with a survivor of Hiroshima.

So no need to panic at all about your head CT but just try and avoid having them if you can in future especially if its just for your reassurance.

I have found if you ask they will nearly always offer a different scan - CT's are cheap whereas mri is expensive.

[jessical]

Thankyou both for your reassurance.. I am still having my one-sided headaches (which have been going on for 2 months now) is there any chance that a brain tumor has actually been triggered off now due to the CT scan i recently had? As nothing seems to make my headache go

[countrygirl]

The CT scan would have picked up any brain tumour no question. Remember that one ct scan will hardly increase your risk of cancer 20 years from now. The Dr who discovered x ray, Marie Curie, all those years ago was exposed to large amounts of radiation in her research as they didn't know the dangers and it took about 30 years of this exposure for her to develop a blood cancer so there is no way at all that your one ct scan could give you a brain tumour right now.

HOpefully giving you information will stop you worrying.

Did you know that tension in your neck from anxiety can give you amongst many other things very bad constant headaches!

[jessical]

Thats made me feel a lot better, thankyou. But does that now mean that ive got a chance of developing it in 20 years time? or just the same chance as everyone else?

And maybe it could partly be due to anxiety as i have often suffered from that in the past, but this headache is starting to drive me crazy now, im not my usual self anymore either as i cant stop thinking about my head and about the scan :weep:

[Gemma T]

Breathe and reboot. You are shifting your anxiety. Firstly it was the results and now its the effects of the scan. You are smart and strong and you know this. We all do this. Just know its a shift in anxiety. Easier said then done as I do this as well just try and convince yourself its a shift in focus because you are comfortable with the scan results. When our anxiety is up it is up and we will look for something else to worry about but that is all it is x x x

[countrygirl]

I just knew when I posted my reply that I should not have said cancer from xray exposure can take 20 years to develop:shrug: but I was trying to put your mind at rest about the scan you have just had. Think of it this way everyone in who has ever had an x ray has increased their risk by a teeny weeny amount of cancer later in life, BUT people living in high radon areas like Cornwall also have a teeny weeny increased risk of cancer later in life, you have to get it all in perspective and health anxiety means that is the last thing we ever do!

I have had alot of normal x rays because of medical conditions before mri was available and my health anxiety so obviously I have increased my risk factor but there is nothing I can do about this so why worry if you cannot change something. But I as I know that the more radiation you are exposed to the more risk you run I decided about 10 yrs ago that I would not have any medical radiation unless there was no alternative and I have stuck to this - its the best I can do but I cannot change what exposure I have already had, which is why I advised that in future you do not have any more CT scans unless there is no alternative. You could have had mri scan this time instead of Ct but you did not know and Drs never tell you about the risks or alternatives but now you do know it is up to you what you do in future.

I cannot stress enough that one single head CT or even two or three single CT scans over your lifetime will barely increase your cancer risk later in life you are much much more likely to be run over by a bus:)

[Gemma T]

Country girl is right. One scan does not hurt.

[jessical]

Thankyou both for spending time reading and replying to me, its certaintly making me feel a lot better and less panicy.

Gemma- What you are saying makes perfect sense, as i am worrying about one thing after another.. i think i need to stop reading articles on the internet. Thankyou for your reassurance and calming me down! x

Country girl- I completely understand what you are saying, i just need to get it out my head and start living normally again, i suffer a lot from anxiety and reading these articles have scared me and perhaps made me more ill due to anxiety? Also, your right.. the doctors never told me i could have had an MRI and they also didnt tell me about the risks of a CT scan. If i had known the risks of CT scans i would have certaintly declined the CT .. When i was having my head CT scan they also didnt give me any breast protection (which once again i have seen articles that have said you need them if your having a CT) .. Is this also dangeous? x

[nomorepanic]

I have never seen anyone get breast protection with a CT scan.

When I was ill back in 2008 I had about 4 CT scans over a period of a couple of months and I have not suffered any long term damage because of it.

[jessical]

Sorry to hear that you wasnt well, and glad you are better. Did the doctors have any concern about you having that many CTs, or did they think it was all ok? x

[nomorepanic]

It was ok but they didn't want me to have any more than that

[jessical]

I saw the neurologist today, he believes i am suffering from anxiety. I cant stop looking at websites that are saying that 'you have an increased risk of cancer from just one CT scan'.. Its ruining my life not being able to have a clear mind. I just want to be back to normal and live life again without this huge worry thats seriously getting me down. Any suggestions?

[nomorepanic]

Ok two ways of looking at it:

1) you are going to get cancer and if you do then you will deal with it at the time

2) you are never going to get cancer from one CT scan and you are fine

Only you can choose which option to take I am afraid.

Why waste time worrying about something (and making yourself ill) when it is 99.9999% never going to happen?

The stress of it all is not good for you and can have detrimental effects in other areas of your life so you need to stop the googling.

[nigel-]

I really cant see you getting a brain tumour from a CT, its the first I have herd of it and I know a lot of people that have had CT scans. ( and there all still alive )

[kinnygirl1]

I think CT scans save far more lives than they endanger. They wouldn't do them if they put people in danger just from one scan. Try not to pay attention to the sites that suggest otherwise. There will always be scare mongerers in this world.
kinnygirl x

[countrygirl]

One scan will not give you cancer, I previously made the point that it is best to avoid multiple or whole body scans because of the radiation dose and you can do something about this in future. Nicola had 4 CT's and as she said her Dr's said no more which is sensible, she needed them at the time and she can not do anything about the radiation dose she has already had but she can like you make sure she does not have any more unless no alternative.

You do not have a brain tumour as confirmed by clear scan, your chance of that one scan causing cancer long term is miniscule.

Please live life and enjoy it.