Need doctor's help! will lung cancer be missed on a pet?

Yes: If the size of lesion is smaller than critical volume it will not be seen at all. Some tumors may not make a nodularity at first therefore will not have uptake density enough to image. The diagnosis of any cancer is made by a pathologist on a microscope. Lung biopsy incisional or excisional is the only way to establish the diagnosis of lung cancer. Petscans show increased metabolism.Not diagnostic.

Maybe: Most lung cancers will be seen on a pet/ct scan, unless they are very small. But if it's the size of a blueberry or larger, it will be seen. Pet scans show bright spots where cells are using a lot of sugar (see picture). This can be from a cancer, an infection, or inflammation. So a negative pet scan means you probably don't have lung cancer. If you do, it's tiny! i hope you feel better!

Size and type...: The size and type of cancer are two factors in pet imaging. If the cancer is very small (less than 1 cm), it may be below the resolution of pet or show lower tracer uptake due to partial volume effect. In addition, certain types of cancer can cause false negative. These include bronchioalveolar carcinoma, differentiated adenocarincoma, carcinoid, and mucoepidermoid carcinoma.