Lung Cancer Screening and Lung Nodule Evaluation Program
Treatments and Services
Diagnostic Tests
Bronchoscopy
During a bronchoscopy, your physician will give you a sedative and then pass a small, hollow tube (bronchoscope) through your nose and throat into the main airway of the lungs. He or she can then see any abnormal areas and extract a tissue sample for analysis.
CT scans use X-ray equipment and computer processing to produce 2-dimensional images of the body. The patient lies on a table and passes through a machine that looks like a large, squared-off donut.
EBUS is a minimally invasive procedure to assess lymph nodes along the bronchial tubes and frequently complements mediastinoscopy. Your physician will give you a sedative and then insert a bronchoscope through your mouth and trachea and into the lungs and surrounding tissues so that samples can be taken from lymph nodes. EBUS does not require any incisions.
A PET scan is used to detect cellular reactions to sugar. Abnormal cells tend to react and "light up" on the scan, thus helping physicians diagnose a variety of conditions. For the PET scan, a harmless chemical, called a radiotracer, is injected into your blood stream.
To understand how well your lungs are working, your physician may order a series of pulmonary function tests. With each breath you take in and breathe out, information is recorded about how much air your lungs take in, how the air moves through your lungs and how well your lungs deliver oxygen to your bloodstream.
