The 2nd opinion suggestion

16 years 4 months ago #10931 by fearandfight
Replied by fearandfight on topic The 2nd opinion suggestion
Holly this is a great topic but come to think of this I honestly never got a second opinion not that I am against them they are a good idea. After I saw my first urologist it was suppose to be this older fellow that my wife knew being a nurse but he was not in so I saw his partner. Now he scoped me and his dx was a 2 inch tumor on my bladder I about fell out of my chair just after recovering from a left hip replacement. I didn't care for his personality and how he spoke to me and also the hospital he was affiliated with. So I didn't hang around to get his Path report I immediately called my PD and got a referral for a Uro/Oncologist at the Univ of Penn Dr. Wein. So I saw him and got my Turbt done up there and when the results came back muscle invasive T2 G3 I had faith in this Dr so I stuck it out at Penn and to this date I am glad I did. So I kind of got lucky here and the reason I went to Penn because I knew in my area I was going to need the best and for me the Univ of Penn was my answer. Joe ;)

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16 years 4 months ago #10570 by wsilberstein
Replied by wsilberstein on topic The 2nd opinion suggestion
Now that I'm a member of this forum and have learned so much here, I can't imagine not getting a second opinion. And perhaps I did in a way since I had the slides reviewed at Harvard, and I reviewed the recommended treatment (Mitomycin C instead of BCG for TaG3 + CIS) with a urological oncologist from Harvard, but in the end, I asked very few questions, and what I read on the internet scared me more than it helped me. My urolologist was a friend and colleague and I followed his advice blindly. I think our personal relationship (even though it was professional and not social) made it more difficult for me to question him. I still don't know if my recurrence-free 6¾ years was a result of his surgical skill or luck because there were so many aspects of his dealings with me that I began to find disturbing. Then, when he basically dismissed the problem with my urethral stricture, I changed urologists and now I'm first having an evaluation of the upper tracts (kidneys & ureters) which I never had. I hope everything turns out OK, but now I really have misgivings about never having had a second opinion.

-Warren
TaG3 + CIS 12/2000. TURB + Mitomycin C (No BCG)
Urethral stricture, urethroplasty 10/2009
CIS 11/2010 treated with BCG. CIS 5/2012 treated with BCG/interferon
T1G3 1/2013. Radical Cystectomy 3/5/2013, No invasive cancer. CIS in right ureter.
Incontinent. AUS implant 2/2014. AUS explant 5/2014
Pediatrician

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16 years 4 months ago #10553 by Gene Beane
Replied by Gene Beane on topic The 2nd opinion suggestion
Glad YOU brought this up, I can't imagine anyone not getting a second opinion. I would think the first urologist would also suggest that. Ours did. After giving us the report on the first turb his words were,, yes its muscle invasive b/c, stage 3 T-2, my recommendation bladder removal, chemo and radiation possibilities, second opinion at the Cleveland Clinic, we will set it all up for you. I guess not everyone is as fortuneate with there first appt. or with the Doctor of choice. But always, always, take a second look. Ginger

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16 years 4 months ago #10521 by Melodie
Replied by Melodie on topic The 2nd opinion suggestion
Holly,

I'm late seeing this discussion on 2nd opinions...just want you to know I appreciate your thoughts, and can't really imagine why anyone would not get a second opinion when the word "cancer" is used. It is just too scarey a word. Then again, I suppose when some are told their cancer is superficial, that is the kind of reassuring news they want to hear and perhaps cease asking for further opinions. Me, I would still be aprehensive and would have to seek additional comment from the medical profession. Anyway, good post...we need to do everything we can to help alert and educate others so that no stone is left unturned...life is just too precious. Take care. Melodie

Melodie, Indy Pouch, U.W.Medical Center, Seattle, Dr. Paul H. Lange & Jonathan L. Wright

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16 years 4 months ago #10393 by Mike
Replied by Mike on topic The 2nd opinion suggestion
Holly I sent you a PM we get one an hour and you never replied why. Joe ;)

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16 years 4 months ago #10290 by marigold
Replied by marigold on topic The 2nd opinion suggestion
I would like to add my two cents regarding the desirability of a second opinion. When I was diagnosed, the doctor wanted to schedule surgery immediately, promoted the external bag, and highly discouraged me from looking into the possibility of a pouch or neobladder. When I raised the issue of a second opinion, he made a face. I walked out the door, cancelled my surgery, and went straight to a specialist at a major cancer center who immediately told me all of my options and offered to do the pouch or neobladder if I wished.

The sad fact is that the original doctor had never done a neobladder or a pouch and was promoting the outside bag not because it would be better for me, but because it was all he could do. I regard that kind of self serving advice as unethical and as showing a complete lack of concern for the best good of the patient. Had I not sought a second opinion, I would have never known (at least until after the fact) the options that were desirable and good for me.

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