 How
To Talk To Your Doctor (or Nurse)
Finding
A New Doctor
Asking
About Your Condition
Asking
About treatment Options
HOW TO
TALK TO YOUR DOCTOR (OR NURSE)
Good communication
with your doctor is important. At your first appointment,
throughout your treatment, and during lifelong follow-up,
you must feel free to ask questions. No question is too trivial
or embarrassing to ask.
Take a friend or family member with you, at
least to the initial appointments. This is when your doctor
explains your condition and when options will be presented.
Take someone you are comfortable talking with who can also
help you remember what was said. Don’t be surprised if
you can’t remember much of what was discussed. This is
very common. You may want to ask your doctor if you may tape
record your conversations.
Write your questions in
a notebook and take it with you to every doctor’s
appointment. You might ask about your symptoms, medications,
side effects, upcoming
tests, or about something you have recently read about cancer.
Ask your most important questions at the initial visits
with
your doctor. This will help you focus on, and retain, the
most vital information. Over the next several appointments,
be sure to ask your remaining questions. Asking every possible
question during the first couple of appointments will lead
to information overload or less-than-comprehensive answers
to your questions.
If you don’t understand what your doctor
is saying, immediately ask that it be repeated or explained.
Write it down if you feel that you won’t remember the
answer. It is important that you understand what is happening.
Like the rest of us, doctors
can make mistakes and forget. Don’t be afraid to make
a suggestion or give a reminder to any of your doctors.
After several discussions with your doctor,
you may want to seek a second opinion. This can sometimes
provide a helpful comparison or confirm your treatment choices.
On the other hand, seeking multiple opinions can sometimes
be a way of denying your cancer or delaying your treatment,
which can be harmful. Only you can know if you are truly
seeking information or if you are trying to avoid treatment.
More information about second opinions can be found in “Getting
Additional Opinions.”
If you are not satisfied
with how your doctor explains things or answers your questions,
you may consider
finding another doctor. But it is also important to remember
that bedside manner is not an indicator
of a doctor’s
competence.
FINDING
A NEW DOCTOR
If you decide, after
careful consideration, that you would like to change doctors,
many resources are available to help you in your search. Talk
to your primary care doctor, your nurse, or call your hospital
or HMO. Your county medical society will have additional suggestions.
Also get recommendations from family or friends who have been
treated for cancer. Make appointments to interview possible
new doctors.
When you call a doctor for an appointment, you
may want to ask the receptionist, nurse, or doctor the following
questions: Is the doctor board certified? (This means the
doctor has advanced training and has passed an examination
to practice this specialty.) Is the doctor experienced in
cancer treatment, and how many years of experience does the
doctor have? Is the doctor associated with a teaching hospital?
ASKING
ABOUT YOUR CONDITION
You may want to direct
the following questions to your doctor during one of your
initial discussions.
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What exactly
is my diagnosis? |
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How was my diagnosis
determined |
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Are more tests
planned? |
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How sure are
you that the tests and diagnosis are accurate? |
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What is the
“stage” of my disease? Is it in one place only,
spread to surrounding areas, or spread throughout the
body? |
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What do you
advise me to do? (If your doctor is not a cancer specialist,
you should be advised to see one for further evaluation
and therapy.) |
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What are the
goals at each step of diagnosis and treatment? |
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Am I being treated
to achieve a cure, or is long-term management of symptoms
or extended survival the goal? (The answer to this question
is your prognosis.) |
ASKING
ABOUT treatment OPTIONS
Once your cancer has
been diagnosed, you need to decide which treatment will be
best for you. Asking your doctor these questions may help
you determine your next step.
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What are my
options, including clinical trials? |
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Which option
do you think is best for me and why? |
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What are the
important long- and short-term side effects of this treatment? |
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What is the
chance of each side effect occurring? |
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What can be
done for each side effect, and how long will it last? |
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Is this treatment
given as a cure, to reduce the size of the cancer, or
to relieve symptoms so that I will feel better? |
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What are the
chances of the cancer spreading? |
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What
is the chance of this treatment extending my life? |
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What is the
chance of this treatment improving my quality of life? |
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What is the
chance of this treatment relieving the symptom that bothers
me the most? |
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Would you (the
doctor) take this treatment yourself? If not, what would
you do? |
Continue
to “Cancer treatment”
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