Results

A gallium scan is a nuclear medicine test that uses a special camera to take pictures of certain tissues in the body after a radioactive tracer (radionuclide or radioisotope) makes them visible. The results of a gallium scan are usually available within 2 days after the scans are completed.

What Affects the Test

Reasons you may not be able to have the test or why the results may not be helpful include:

• Pregnancy. A gallium scan is not usually done during pregnancy because the radiation could damage the developing baby (fetus).
• Having barium or bismuth in your system. If a gallium scan is needed, it should be done before any tests that use barium (such as a barium enema). Taking a medicine (such as Pepto-Bismol) that contains bismuth can also interfere with a gallium scan.
• Not being able to remain still during the test.

What To Think About

• A gallium scan is used for specific types of cancers, mainly of the lymph nodes, bones, or bone marrow. A normal scan does not exclude the possibility of cancer, because some types of cancer do not show up on a gallium scan. A gallium scan also cannot determine whether a tumor is cancerous (malignant) or noncancerous (benign).
• The results of a gallium scan should be interpreted along with the results of other tests, such as a physical exam, blood tests, and X-rays. In many cases, results obtained from a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) or positron emission tomography (PET) may be as accurate as the results obtained from a gallium scan. For more information, see the topics Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) and Positron Emission Tomography (PET).
• If other nuclear scanning tests need to be done, these tests should be scheduled before a gallium scan because the gallium tracer stays in the body longer than other tracer compounds.