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Prostate Cancer Saved My Life. Let Me Explain.

John Clemens Campbell credits serendipity with the discovery of a lung tumor that might have become deadly if it had not been removed. He's not the only patient who's been similarly fortunate. (By Michael Temchine For The Washington Post)

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"It's one thing to screen for something among ill patients and detect what we were looking for. It's quite another to discover an entirely different medical issue."

During my most recent PET-CT scan, the technician at Sibley told me, "You can't imagine how many of these [unexpected problems] we find when we're looking for something else entirely."

Yes, I can.

My response? Don't get a full-body scan if you don't need one. And be aware that any scan can cause scares -- and lead to further testing -- with findings that turn out to be false alarms.

But I'm now a believer in the serendipitous element of medical diagnosis -- and committed to getting any scan my doctor recommends.

You just never know what might turn up. ¿

John Clemens Campbell is a Washington area freelance writer who has a marketing and survey research business. Comments:health@washpost.com.

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