Is CT necessary for follow-up after liver cancer treatment? You must pay attention to these points after liver cancer treatment

Liver cancer is one of the most common serious diseases in recent years. When the condition is serious, it can cause the patient to lose his life directly. Therefore, liver cancer patients should not be too careless in normal times and should take timely treatment. In life, many liver cancer patients have their disease disappear after treatment, and many need to be followed up after the disease is treated. However, some patients have asked why they must undergo CT scans during follow-up. Can this examination be avoided? In fact, follow-up after liver cancer treatment is a CT scan.

Is CT scan necessary for follow-up after liver cancer treatment?

Many patients may find that during the follow-up of liver cancer, doctors will prescribe some imaging examinations for patients, among which doctors will repeatedly emphasize that patients should undergo CT examinations. CT scans have become a common routine examination method in the diagnosis and follow-up of liver cancer. It can clearly show the size, shape and richness of liver cancer, and also allow doctors to know the relationship between liver cancer and intrahepatic ducts, so as to make further clear judgments.

In addition, after treatment, CT can be used as an evaluation of the efficacy of the treatment. It can determine the patient's chance of tumor recurrence. CT is an indispensable part of the patient's follow-up. Since monitoring tumor recurrence is the main purpose of the follow-up, abdominal CT scans can well detect the chance of tumor recurrence. Its sensitivity and specificity are much higher than B-ultrasound, and it is more affordable. Therefore, many doctors recommend CT examinations when following up on liver cancer patients.

However, some liver cancer patients may worry about the side effects of CT scans, and worry that it is a radioactive examination that may cause cancer recurrence, so they are more reluctant to have CT scans. However, studies have shown that although exposure to X-rays can cause a variety of tumors, the risk of cancer caused by CT scans depends on the age of the patient undergoing the examination. If children are exposed to excessive radiation, they are more likely to develop leukemia and thyroid cancer. If the patient is older, the incidence of lung cancer will increase, but these risks are only increased, and cancer will not actually occur. Compared with the importance of monitoring the recurrence of liver cancer, CT scans are inevitable, even if it has certain risks.

Kind tips

If the doctor recommends a CT scan during follow-up for liver cancer patients, the patients should not be too averse and should follow the doctor's instructions to have the examination. This way they can know the recovery of their liver and monitor the recurrence rate of their cancer, allowing the doctor to make a better treatment plan based on their situation.