“They’re wonderful people. They’re always so interested and concerned that you feel special.”
Diagnostic Testing
We have onsite radiology imaging (PET and CT scans) and a lab to help make diagnostic testing timely and convenient. Whether you’re coming to us because your doctor suspects you may have cancer or if you’ve already been diagnosed, we’re here to help you through the process. We’ll ease your mind by explaining everything that will happen, how long things will take and when you will hear the results.
Time frames for lab tests or scan results are:
- Medical imaging/scans: 48 hours
- Tumor markers: 48 hours
- Bone marrow: 5-7 days
- Pathology reports: 7-10 working days
Our Lab
You may need regular blood or urine tests throughout your treatment to learn more about how your cancer is affecting other parts of your body. These tests give us valuable information to help us know how best to treat you and keep you as healthy as possible during the treatment process. We can:
- Establish baseline measurements before you begin treatment so we can compare future treatments to your original results
- Determine which treatment may be appropriate
- Verify that a treatment has been effective
- Find subtle changes during routine check-ups before you develop symptoms of a disease
- Find clues that may indicate the reason you are experiencing symptoms
- Monitor the cancer to see if it has gotten better, stayed the same or gotten worse
PET/CT Scans
An integrated PET/CT scan is the most advanced imaging technology for the detection and evaluation of cancer. A PET/CT scan provides images of the entire body and generates high-resolution images of abnormal activity and its location. Abnormal activity often takes place before physical changes are identifiable by other types of imaging such as MRI, CT, x-ray and ultrasound. The scan detects primary and secondary disease earlier and more accurately than other imaging technology. Before having a PET scan, your doctor may order a series of x-rays, MRIs or CTs. Our team will work with your doctor and insurance payer to determine which test is most appropriate based on your diagnosis and symptoms.
Our doctors use PET/CT images to:
- Identify disease often before it shows up on other exams
- Determine whether or not the cancer has spread (the stage of the cancer)
- See how the body has responded to chemotherapy, radiation therapy or surgery
- Eliminate ineffective or unnecessary surgical or medical treatments
- Detect recurrence of cancer early.
What to expect
Our PET/CT technologist will bring you from the waiting room to a small, private and comfortable room. You will receive an injection of a small amount of radioactive glucose (also known as sugar) through an IV in your arm. You may feel a “warm” sensation when the radioactive glucose is injected. Then you relax and wait for approximately an hour while the radioactive sugar circulates in your body. After about one hour, our technologist will position you on the scanner. The PET/CT scan takes about 30-45 minutes. The radioactive sugar is short-lived and will leave your body quickly, it is important to drink plenty of water following your scan to flush the sugar out of your body.
During the scan, you will be exposed to a minimal amount of radiation, however, we believe the benefits of the information provided by the scan outweigh the small potential risk. Please let us know if you have any concerns about this exposure.
Typically, you will get scan results in 48 hours.
Bone Marrow Aspiration & Biopsy
Bone marrow is a fatty substance that is found inside larger bones. Bone marrow produces all the different types of blood cells needed for vital functioning. Red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets are all made within the marrow and regulate the rate that these cells are made. Your doctor can evaluate and diagnose the reason behind an abnormal complete blood count by performing a procedure called a bone marrow aspiration and/or bone marrow biopsy.
Bone marrow has a fluid portion and a more solid portion. A bone marrow aspiration is when your doctor uses a needle to withdraw a sample of the fluid portion of your bone marrow. In a bone marrow biopsy, a needle is used to withdraw a sample of the solid portion.
What to expect
When you arrive for your bone marrow exam, we will take you into a patient room.
Your doctor will clean your skin and then give a local anesthetic injection with a small needle to numb the area where the larger needle will be inserted into the bone (usually the hip bone).
A sample of bone marrow is removed, the needle is then removed and a pressure bandage is applied to the site. You will then be observed in our office for thirty minutes to assess you and make certain the bleeding has stopped.
The bone marrow sample(s) is sent to an outside lab where a specially trained physician will examine the blood cells under a microscope and then send a report to your doctor. This usually takes 7-10 working days. Your doctor will discuss the results with you and the treatment options available.
Why Choose Us?
- Highly trained, collaborative oncology specialists all currently taking new patients
- Consultation appointments scheduled within 3-5 days of referral and in some cases same-day appointments available
- One-stop campus for comprehensive diagnositics and treatment for many types of cancer including radiation, chemotherapy infusion, lab draws and imaging services
- Onsite infusion center offers comfortable, home-like setting
- In-office lab testing
- In-office medication dispensary
- Open, immediate access to outpatient symptom management
- 24-hour physician coverage
- QOPI-certified clinical trials
- We accept most insurance plans including Medicare, Medicaid, and VA
