Medical Oncologist
Reading your scan report
How to Read a Scan Report — Without Panicking
Scan reports are written for radiologists, not for patients or families. Reading one alone, at home, before speaking to your oncologist is one of the most anxiety-inducing things you can do. This page explains what the words mean — so when you do read yours, you know what you are looking at.
Medically reviewed by Dr. Bharati Devi Gorantla, Medical Oncologist, MBBS · MD · DM (Adyar, Chennai) · ECMO · MRCP SCE (UK) · Last reviewed August 2026
- The Impression is the only summary — Everything before it is technical description. Go to the last section first.
- Stable is often good news — No change means the disease is being controlled. It is not the same as treatment failing.
- Avid does not mean cancer — On a PET scan, an FDG-avid area could be inflammation or infection, not only cancer.
- Your oncologist reads context, not just the report — A radiologist describes an image. Your oncologist interprets it against your full clinical picture.
17+
Cancer Specialists
on Panel
on Panel
96.9%
Breast Cancer
Survival Rate*
Survival Rate*
15,000+
Patients
Treated
Treated
4.8★
Google Rating
(800+ reviews)
(800+ reviews)
A cancer scan report is written by a radiologist and describes what they see in the images. It is not a diagnosis. Read the Impression section at the end first — that is the radiologist's summary. Terms like stable disease, partial response, and progressive disease describe how your cancer has changed compared to the previous scan.
What do the words in a scan report actually mean?
- Impression
- The final section of the report, where the radiologist summarises what they found. This is where your oncologist goes first, and it is the section that most directly shapes treatment decisions.
- Complete response
- No cancer can be detected on this scan after treatment. It does not confirm that every cancer cell is gone, but it means the imaging cannot find evidence of active disease.
- Partial response
- The tumour has shrunk significantly compared to the previous scan. This means the treatment is having a measurable effect.
- Stable disease
- The tumour has neither grown significantly nor shrunk significantly. For many cancers, stable is a good outcome — it means the disease is being held in check.
- Progressive disease
- The tumour has grown, or new areas of cancer have appeared. This tells your oncologist that the current treatment plan may need to change.
- Lesion
- Any abnormal area the radiologist can see on the scan. The word alone does not tell you what the area is — your oncologist interprets its significance in the context of your full history.
- Lymphadenopathy
- Enlarged lymph nodes. Lymph nodes can swell because of infection, inflammation, or cancer. The report alone does not determine which.
- SUVmax (PET scan only)
- A number reflecting how much glucose an area is absorbing. Higher numbers suggest more metabolic activity. Your oncologist interprets this alongside the scan images and your clinical history, not in isolation.
- FDG-avid (PET scan only)
- An area that is absorbing the glucose tracer used in a PET scan. Inflammation and infection can also appear avid. This word alone does not mean cancer.
- No significant interval change
- The area looks the same as it did on the previous scan. On a monitoring scan, this is usually a reassuring phrase — though your oncologist will interpret it within the context of your treatment.
- Clinical correlation is recommended
- The radiologist is asking your oncologist to consider the finding alongside your symptoms and history before deciding what it means. It is a standard phrase, not an alarm — it means the image is one part of the picture and your doctor needs to add the rest.
What should you do when your scan report arrives?
- Go to the Impression section at the end of the report, not the beginning.
- Note which previous scan the report compares to — the comparison date matters.
- Write down every word you do not understand before your appointment.
- Do not search individual findings online before speaking to your oncologist.
- Do not compare your report to another patient's report, even with the same cancer type.
- Tell your team if you are reading the report before your appointment, so they can call you if you are distressed.
Meet the Specialists
17+ senior cancer specialists. One panel for your case.
Trained at AIIMS, Tata Memorial, and leading international centres. Combined 150+ years of experience. Every complex case is reviewed by 3+ of them — together.
Medical Oncologist
Dr. C. Raghavendra Reddy
MBBS(Gold Medal), DNB(General Medicine), DM(Medical Oncology)(Gold Medal)
Medical Oncologist
Dr. Bharati Devi Gorantla
MBBS, MD(General Medicine), DM(Medical Oncology)(Adyar,Chennai), ECMO, MRCP SCE(UK)
Medical Oncologist
Dr. Owais Mohammed
MBBS, MD (General Medicine), DrNB (Medical Oncology), ECMO, MRCP SCE (Medical Oncology) (UK)
Medical Oncologist
Medical Oncologist
Surgical Oncologist
Dr. Muralidhar Muddusetty
MBBS (AIIMS), MS (Surgery) (AIIMS), DNB (Surgical Oncology), MRCS (Edinburgh)
Surgical Oncologist
Surgical Oncologist
Surgical Oncologist
Dr. Vinay Mamidala
MBBS, MS(General Surgery), M.Ch(Surgical Oncology), FMAS, FARIS(Ongoing)
Surgical Oncologist
Radiation Oncologist
Radiation Oncologist
Radiation Oncologist
Hematologist
Interventional Radiologist
Dr. Mohammed Imran
Surgical Oncologist
Dr. Vajja Sandeep Kumar
MBBS, MS (General Surgery), DrNB (Surgical Oncology), FALS Oncology
Surgical Oncologist
Want a specific doctor for your case? Mention them when booking.
Book Free ConsultationBook an appointment with our specialist
Share your name and number — we'll call you back within 30 minutes to schedule your consultation.
Get a straight answer from a specialist
45 minutes, your reports reviewed, your questions answered in plain language.
CT scan versus PET-CT scan: what is the difference?
| CT scan | PET-CT scan | |
|---|---|---|
| What it measures | Structure and size of organs and tumours | How actively cells are absorbing glucose |
| What it is good at | Measuring tumour size, checking lymph nodes, finding fluid | Detecting active cancer, assessing spread, evaluating treatment response |
| Key terms in the report | Hypodense, hyperdense, enhancement, nodule, mass | SUVmax, FDG-avid, uptake, avidity |
| When it is typically used | Staging, routine monitoring of size change | Staging, confirming disease activity, post-treatment assessment |
Why does one report not tell the whole story?
A radiologist's job is to describe what they see in the images. Your oncologist's job is to decide what it means for you. Those are different tasks, and the written report is only one input into the second.
Your oncologist reads your scan result alongside your symptoms, blood tests, and how your disease has behaved over time. A single word in a report — even a frightening one — rarely means what it appears to mean when read in isolation at midnight.
If you receive your report before your appointment and you are distressed, call your oncology team. You are not expected to interpret it alone.
Explore 39 more Monitoring, Resistance & Long-Term Response topics
Monitoring, Scans & Response Assessment
- Are Tumour Markers Reliable on Targeted Therapy?
- Complete Response, Partial Response, Stable Disease: What Each Means
- Do I Need Regular Brain MRIs on Targeted Therapy?
- How Doctors Measure Whether Targeted Therapy Is Working
- How Often Will I Need Scans on Targeted Therapy?
- How to Read a CT or PET Scan Report Without Panicking
- Is 'Stable Disease' Good News or Bad News?
- Scanxiety: How to Get Through the Wait for Scan Results
- Tumour Flare and Pseudoprogression: When Growth Isn't Really Growth
- Understanding PFS, OS and Median Survival Without Losing Hope
- What Happens at a Follow-Up Visit: A Walk-Through
- Which Blood Tests Are Repeated Every Month and Why
- ctDNA Monitoring: Can a Blood Test Predict Progression Early?
Long-Term Response, Stopping & Survivorship
- Am I Still a Cancer Patient? Identity After Long-Term Response
- Bone Health, Heart Health and Late Effects to Monitor
- Can You Ever Stop Targeted Therapy If the Cancer Is Gone?
- Drug Holidays: Are Planned Breaks Safe?
- Follow-Up Schedule After Stopping Targeted Therapy
- How Long Do You Have to Stay on Targeted Therapy?
- Long-Term Effects of Taking a TKI for 5 or 10 Years
- Restarting Treatment After a Break
- Treatment-Free Remission in CML: Who Can Stop Their TKI?
- Your Survivorship Care Plan: What Should Be In It
Resistance, Progression & Next Lines
- Being Told 'There Are No More Options': Is That Really True?
- Brain Metastases on Targeted Therapy: Does Your Drug Reach the Brain?
- Can You Continue the Same Drug After Progression?
- Combination Therapy to Overcome Resistance
- Do You Need Another Biopsy When the Cancer Progresses?
- Histologic Transformation: When Lung Cancer Changes Type
- How to Emotionally Process a Progression Scan
- Leptomeningeal Disease: Symptoms, Diagnosis and Treatment
- Life After ALK Inhibitor Resistance: Sequencing Your Options
- MET Amplification and Other Bypass Resistance Mechanisms
- Oligoprogression: When Only One or Two Spots Grow
- Primary vs Acquired Resistance: Two Very Different Problems
- Should You Change Hospitals After Progression?
- What Happens After Osimertinib Stops Working?
- What Is Sequencing and Why the Order of Drugs Matters
- Why Does Targeted Therapy Stop Working? The Biology of Resistance
Next step
Still not sure what applies to you?
Send your reports across and a senior medical oncologist will go through what they mean, what is known, and what the options actually are.
Common questions
Frequently asked questions
Why does my report sound alarming when my doctor seems calm?
Radiologists write in technical language designed for other doctors, and the words carry specific clinical meanings that differ from everyday usage. Words like mass, lesion, or suspicious describe what is visible on the image — they are not a verdict. Your oncologist reads the same report in the context of your full history and knows which findings are significant and which are not. If your doctor is calm, that is clinical information worth trusting.
What does 'cannot exclude' mean in a scan report?
It means the radiologist cannot rule out a particular finding from the images alone — but they are not confirming it either. It is a way of flagging uncertainty rather than stating a conclusion. It does not mean the condition is present. It means further information, such as your clinical symptoms or a different type of scan, may be needed to clarify. Your oncologist will tell you whether anything further is needed.
My report mentions something new that was not on the last scan. Does that mean my cancer has spread?
Not necessarily. New findings on a scan can include areas of inflammation, post-treatment change, infection, or incidental findings entirely unrelated to your cancer. Your oncologist will tell you which new findings are significant and what they mean for your treatment. Do not draw a conclusion from the report alone before you have spoken to them.
What is the difference between what the radiologist says and what my oncologist says?
The radiologist describes the images. They do not know your full medical history, what treatment you are receiving, or how your disease has progressed over time. Your oncologist takes the radiologist's description and interprets it in the context of all of that. This is why two patients can have similar-sounding reports and arrive at completely different treatment plans.
Can I ask for the actual scan images, not just the written report?
Yes. You are entitled to request your images. They are usually available on a disc or through a digital link from the imaging centre. However, images without training are genuinely difficult to read — what looks alarming to an untrained eye is often normal anatomy. If you want to understand what you are seeing, ask your oncologist to walk you through the images at your next appointment rather than viewing them alone.
What should I tell my oncologist when I come in after reading the report?
Bring the list of words you did not understand and the specific sentences that worried you. Ask directly: what does this finding mean for my treatment plan, and does anything in this report change what we were already doing? Writing the answers down helps — these conversations are hard to retain when you are anxious. It is entirely reasonable to ask for the key points in writing before you leave the appointment.