Question 1

20 week scan showed up baby has 3 dark spots on his liver should i be worried?

Accepted Answer

Impossible: to say..."dark spots" is not very specific.  Normal blood vessels show up as black and look circular in cross section, so it may be nothing. However, talk to your doc about the results.

Question 2

what are the bright white spots on a bone scan?

Accepted Answer

Isotope deposits: A bone scan invovles injecting a radioisotope into the body.  The brighter white areas are where the body has deposited more of the isotope than the less bright areas.  Some of this is normal, such as in the bladder but some of these areas may be abnormal.

Question 3

what are "hot spots" that are visible on bone scans. are they  growth plates?

Accepted Answer

Exposed bone mineral: A bone scan is done by injecting a radioactive isotope made up in a complex containing mdp, a substance related to the bisphosphonate drugs like fosamax (alendronate). Mdp can attach to bone mineral, but only where the protective bone-blood barrier is breached.  This can be at fractures, invasive tumors, inflamed joints, and growing points as well as at normal sites of bone self-repair.

Question 4

how does pet scans work when detecting possible lymphoma? does "hot spots" mean malignancy?

Accepted Answer

No: A hot spot means an area of increased sugar utilization. Can be inflammatory, infectious or malignant.

Question 5

are bright orange spots on pet scan cancer?

Accepted Answer

Tricky: Not all cancers are bright on pet scans and not all bright activity in a pet scan is cancer. Inflammation/infection can also show bright activity.  Pet scans are performed in conjugation with ct (pet/ct) and though pet is great for detecting metabolism, its specificity is not as great. Reading a pet requires care/skill. Normal activity is seen in the brain, heart, liver, spleen, kidneys, bladder.

Question 6

are all bone scan hot spots some sort of cancer?

Accepted Answer

No -Nonspecific: Called "false positives" when this is the case.  Can be in joints (common); prior fractures; benign bony abnormalities. Next step may be mri, plain x-rays or biopsy t better characterize or define cause.

Question 7

what can white spots on spine in mri scan indicate?

Accepted Answer

Depends on where: In the spine they could be a hemangioma or a lipoma, benign bone lesions...


In the spinal cord.......Multiple sclerosis, tumor, or cord trauma. To name a few....

Question 8

what could cause dark spots on the liver during a cat scan?

Accepted Answer

Tissue density: Basically speaking, the darker the area the lower the density.  Air would be the darkest, water less and bone the lightest.  In a non contrast CT, bile filled areas such as the ducts gall bladder or cysts may be the darkest.  This will change if an IV contrast is added during the examination.  There are always variations to this based on different pathologies

Question 9

will lytic lesions light up on bone scan? doesn't it just show osteoblastic activity, not -clastic? or do osteoclastic maybe show up as "cold spots"?

Accepted Answer

Smart question: I wondered about that myself. It could be the balance between blastic (forming) and clastic (dissolving) bone which determines the lighting process. Usually, lytic are cold and do not light up. Blastic lesions do. Thanks.

Question 10

what do dark spots on my mri bone scan on my spine mean?

Accepted Answer

Unable to answer: T1 images will show water, air, and cortical bone as dark. T2 images will show air, cortical bone, and other hydrophobic substances as dark. So depends on image acquisition and anatomy.

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Doctor answers about:

Spots onliver scan

A member asked:

20 week scan showed up baby has 3 dark spots on his liver should i be worried?

A member asked:

What are the bright white spots on a bone scan?

A member asked:

What are "hot spots" that are visible on bone scans. are they growth plates?

A member asked:

How does pet scans work when detecting possible lymphoma? does "hot spots" mean malignancy?

A member asked:

Are bright orange spots on pet scan cancer?

A member asked:

Are all bone scan hot spots some sort of cancer?

A member asked:

What can white spots on spine in mri scan indicate?

A member asked:

What could cause dark spots on the liver during a cat scan?

A member asked:

Will lytic lesions light up on bone scan? doesn't it just show osteoblastic activity, not -clastic? or do osteoclastic maybe show up as "cold spots"?

A member asked:

What do dark spots on my mri bone scan on my spine mean?

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