Possible Lung Cancer--shadow on xray

My MIL was called by her primary physician yesterday and told that she needed to come in for bloodwork and a ct scan.  Her last chest xray showed a shadow on her lung and they are concerned.  She smoked for years but quit about 20 years ago.  She has COPD, Emphysema, and her mother passed of lung cancer about 50 years ago, so obviously she is concerned.  My question is, could something other than cancer be causing the shadow?  Thanks in advance.

[DrBhumikaMD]

Hi,
Yes a pneumonia, bacterial infection, tuberculosis, fungal infections and other diseases all could cause a shadow on the chest xray which needs to be investigated further. A blood test is done to rule out infection , and a CT scan would help in identifying the type of lesion causing the shadow - a pneumonitis or a mass lesion. Dont worry and get the investigations done as advised and wait for the results to come in. Goodluck.

[ELVEERA]

Hello, my mother was informed that there is a shadow on her chest x-ray. They told her to get a ct scan, she did. They called and said she has something about 1.3 cm on her lymph node, they said she needs a pet scan. I'm freaking out because she's not. I just want some advise as to what to expect from here and what this means.