CEA-Scan Helps Stage Patient with Primary Colorectal Cancer

This is a series of coronal CEA-Scan images of a 58-year-old male who presented at the ER of his hospital with clear evidence of obstruction. The resident on duty ordered a CT study, which clearly showed the probable site of obstruction as a primary colon tumor, and areas of hypodensity in the liver, suggestive of metastatic disease. However, no lymph node involvement was noted on the CT. The CEA-Scan showed extensive lymphatic involvement, and metastatic disease in the liver. The slide calls out several landmarks: The bladder and kidneys are normally intense, because they're the organs of excretion of the antibody fragment and isotope. The iliac vessels, iliac crests and genitalia are visible due to normal blood pool. This case illustrates how CEA-Scan provides information unduplicated by CT in the extrahepatic abdomen and pelvis, and helps confirm suspicious regions in the liver.

click here to go back to the interesting cases index