Worried after scan

Hi,

I went to my gp 4 weeks ago with ulcers in my mouth & a lump in my neck. She referred me on the urgent pathway. I saw a consultant 1st have referred me for a scan which I had Monday. On my ok side the scan was very quick but on my bad side and thyroid area he kept going over then went behind my ear. After the scan he said that the doctor would be in touch. I’ve had scans before & they have always said after that everything looks ok. Yesterday I received a call with an appointment for next week. I’m worried sick as I thought if all clear I would just receive a letter to that effect. Has anyone had any experience? The letter says to review & discuss my condition. Any advice/experiences would be appreciated. 

  • They will usually give you an appointment regardless of the result. I have always received at least a phone appointment and usually an in-person appointment for any results. In fact, I have an in-person appointment next week to get the results of a biopsy the consultant even considered cancelling because he thought it unnecessary and he gave me the appointment before I had the biopsy, so it couldn't be because he found anything.

    I doubt they would just send you a letter saying you were all clear. Apart from anything else, you might have questions for them, such as what else might be causing the ulcers and if you needed any further treatment to get rid of them.

    I don't think that anything that happened is indicative either way. Scans cannot diagnose thyroid cancer anyway. At most, they can say if there is a nodule there, so even if they have found a thyroid nodule, the odds are that it is benign. About 95% of thyroid nodules are benign, so if they found a thyroid nodule, they would have to arrange a biopsy, which would be very likely to tell you everything was OK.

  • Thank you so much for your reply.