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My PET scan has finally been scheduled for Tuesday, July 24th.  What is a PET scan, you may be wondering.  I knew I was.

Actually I knew of PET scans from my friend Mary’s long tribulations with breast cancer but my knowledge of them was limited to a vague concept of it being sort of like an MRI or CAT scan only of the whole body and it shows problem areas and I’m not talking about love handles.  I certainly don’t need an expensive scan to point those out to me, thank you very much.

PET stands for positron emission tomography and no, that really isn’t supposed to mean anything to you and if it does, you obviously got some book learnin’ in ya.

A radioactive isotope is injected into your blood stream and then you are put through a CT style machine.  The isotope reacts to things like cancer and will show up on the scan.

The cost for a PET scan runs upwards of $6,000.

And now I shall begin thinking of all of the things I would rather be doing with $6,000.  Most of them involve Vegas.

But this will, theoretically, solve the staging question and settle the bet that I envision was placed between Gastro-Guy, Dr. Frenchy, and Dr. Wile E Coyote, Super Genius about whether or not I have Stage 1, 2, or 3.  I also envision that said bet was placed while the doctors were in the hospital break room in between dramatic surgeries and sleeping with interns but perhaps I have watched too much Grey’s Anatomy.