What is the follow-up after lung cancer treatment?
Patients need to speak to their doctor of a follow-up plan. Follow-up after lung cancer treatment is a set of recommendations. If you have just finished treatment, here are the few things to keep in mind as a part of follow-up care:
Reoccurrence or persistence of symptoms
Do not hesitate to report symptoms that recur, or new symptoms that come up or even persistent symptoms like;
- Persistent cough
- Pain in the back, legs, and chest
- Coughing up blood
- headaches
- Persistent pain abdomen
Follow-up visits
Follow up visits are a must for lung cancer and must be planned out with a doctor and should be done every 3 to 6 months. During follow-up visits, it is common for the doctor or medical team to ask how you are coping or if side effects or symptoms have recurred. The doctor does a physical exam which includes listening to the lungs or feel the abdomen for swelling or lumps. Follow-up visits may include more screening tests, such as:
- A CT scan or PET scan
- Chest X-ray
- Blood chemistry tests
Read more on how to cope with lung cancer.
