Spot on Chest X-Ray

Hi, my father recently had a chest x-ray done and the doctors have found a spot in his lung. He went to see a doctor due to a cough he has been having for a few months, but has recently gotten better. My father is a smoker and has been smoking for about 20 years. This spot was not there a year ago, but it has shown up now. The doctor said he presumes it to be cancer until a CT scan is done. The doctor also said the spot was too low to be bronchitis. I wanted to know if this spot could be anything else other than cancer, my father has not shown any symptoms of having lung cancer except for coughing and slight pains. My family and I are praying for the best. Any help would be great, Thank you.

Here is a link to the x-ray: http://img12.imageshack.us/my.php?image=7899258656si6e3c.png

[Kamal S Saini, MD, MRCP (UK), DM]

Hi,
With a long history of smoking, chronic cough, pains, and a suspicious mass on chest X ray, we definitely need to quickly rule out lung cancer.
The other possibilities (infection, granuloma, etc) are of less concern, and a detailed examination should be undertaken if cancer is ruled out.
I recommend that you schedule a PET-CT, or at least a CT scan at the earliest.
Good luck and all the best!