cancer treatment - cancer staging
Staging is the process of gathering information about the breast cancer from a number of diagnostic tests to determine how widespread the cancer is.The diagnostic tests that can be performed are chest x-ray, liver ultrasound and bone scan. Depending on the results of these tests, CT or MRI scans can also be done. Blood tests to evaluate overall health may also be done.
Staging investigations are not usually requested in women whose cancer is localised in the breast. However, they are requested for all women prior to commencing chemotherapy. These tests can be repeated if a response to treatment needs to be monitored or a woman presents with symptoms suggestive that there may be involvement at a distant site.
Staging tests are not usually ordered on a regular basis because research studies have shown that most recurrences are detected as part of the routine follow-up and looking for cancer at distant sites in women without symptoms does not improve the outcome.
Please feel free to
discuss whether or not you should be having initial baseline staging
investigations at the time of diagnosis or on a regular basis with your
doctor.