snarl growl bang head smash things punch self

[WilliamPitt]

A very good friend of mine was diagnosed with a malignant tumor in her breast a few days ago. She went in for a second opinion today, and the doctor noticed that the blood type on the tests was wrong. They screwed up the samples in the lab. My friend does not have a malignant tumor, but sapent several days thinking she did. Conversely, some other woman was told she is fine, and now has to find out she has a malignant tumor.

About two years ago, my mother was diagnosed with metastasised lung cancer. We began to make plans for selling her house and finalizing the will. Then, the next doctor took a look, and realized the tumor was a spot on the x-ray film, a filament of asbestos in her lungs that had been there since the Carter administration. I wanted to burn the hospital down.

Shakespeare had it wrong. First thing we'll do, let's kill all the doctors. Present company excluded, of course.

Grrrr. I'm really happy for her, but I will be honest. I have murder in my heart right now for the medical 'professionals' who've put her through the wringer.

[K8-EEE]

1. How Awful, but....HOW GREAT!!

Better than the other way round. Yeah I've been scared half to death by doctors more than once for nothing.

[Not_Giving_Up]

2. What a mess!!

At least she found out that she's OK before going through any major treatments!

[New Earth]

3. ]

someone i work with is going out for surgery this coming week and i'll be doing her job while she's gone :cry: i don't know the whole story, but it has something to do with a tumor, and she might have to get her boobs removed :(

[WilliamPitt]

4. No

Out west.

[New Earth]

5. lol, you replied to quick

i didn't think so.

[miss_kitty]

6. I wish they'd made a mistake diagnosing me

and I really did not have cancer. :(

I am happy for the outcomes with those close to you. Once you get the word, though, you hope for a mistake in diagnosis. I'dve been pissed, but grateful.

[WilliamPitt]

7. A good point

and one that did not occur to me.

I hope that my posting this did not offend or upset you.

[miss_kitty]

12. not at all

I understand your anger, and what happened to me-well it's what happened.

Being given the word is devastating. And to have been given it erroneously-well I'dve been totally pissed off.

Good reason to go for the second opinion. :)

[progmom]

15. I had no idea, miss kitty

How are you doing????

[miss_kitty]

20. I'm fine now thank you

but I had some bad times there for awhile-including the giant medical mistake (a leet too much radiation) which sent me to surgery two times-it's a long sad story filled with much bullshit. :D

[Aiptasia]

8. two words: second opinion

Especially in life threatening instances.

[Blue_In_AK]

9. Something similar happened to a friend of mine...

...misdiagnosed as HIV positive. She was a mess until they told her it was all a mistake. Terrible.

[EstimatedProphet]

10. But America has the best medical system in the world!

Seriously, this is exactly what happens when you try to industrialize the medical industry, like what has happened because of HMO's. The emphasis is on getting people diagnosed ASAP, then operated on, then out the door. Make the turnover high, so that more patients can go through the system in less time.
This is on a much smaller scale, but I have my own gripes about the medical industry:
I had mono a couple years ago, but no one could diagnose it because I got jaundiced too. (I have a condition called Gilbert's syndrome, which results in my developing jaundice very easily.) Everyone kept telling me it was hepatitis. I kept telling them I already had hepatitis, and Gilbert's syndrome would make me jaundiced for any viral infection, and they said that it must just be another kind of hepatitis (note-this was scaring the hell out of me, because I have been terrified of getting Hepatitis C for a long time. It never goes away). Finally after weeks of run-around and weekly blood tests, my "specialist" told me he was going to run a definitive test for hepatitis-which came up negative. This supposed specialist then pats himself on the back about how he figured it out, regardless of 1) I am STILL sick, and 2) he could have run the conclusive test AT THE OUTSET. so after him thanking himself for a job well done, I went off to get well 2 weeks later, still not knowing what I had.
Finally months later I had another doctor look at my blood tests, and tell me it was obvious it was mono.

[Red State Rebel]

11. Oy vey!

Thats a tough one - congrats to your friend, prayers up for the other person.

[LynzM]

13. Ugh.

Had a friend recently who was told she was 7 weeks pregnant because they mixed up the lab results... I feel for the woman who was told that she wasn't pregnant. I'm glad to hear your friend is ok, but I feel so bad for the woman who now has to find out that she's not ok, after all. Grr. and :hug:

[Deb]

14. Same thing happened with my Dad

Tests galore and within three weeks they prepared us for liver cancer, then colon cancer and lastly gall bladder cancer.

A team of Drs said the tests came back positive for cancers but the GI expert found only stones and inflammation when he "went in". What a wild ride that was.

My sister says it was the miracle of prayer. Now I don't know if that is true but the thought did keep me from staying angry at the team who saved my father's life. :-)

I say lets kill all wrong test results first.

[SOteric]

16. I'm glad that they discovered the mistake before

they cut something off or cut your friend open. If you're ever diagnosed with something very serious, please, everyone, seek a second qualified independent opinion. (And not from the general population of DU, as well-meaning as we all are).

[benny05]

17. I'm glad your friend is OK

People crap all over John Edwards for his work with medical malpractice. His cases were not like this one that you described, but I always get riled over people who call him an ambulance chaser.

Your friend and you must be breathing a sigh of relief. Hope she's having sparkling water or champagne.

BTW, thank you for your good work.

[skygazer]

18. What a frightening experience

I've had several similar ones. The worst was when I had a routine MRI a couple of years ago - I suffer from migraine and I have a history of aneurism in my family. Since I have excellent insurance, the doc thought it would be good to do an MRI and see if there was anything in there - neither she nor I expected there to be - it was simply a precaution.

Since I didn't hear back from her about it, I assumed all was well. Eight months went by, during which i visited the office for other things several times. No mention was made by anyone of the MRI results.

One day, my chiropracter suggested I ask if the MRI showed any abnormalities in my neck as she suspected a herniated disk. I called the doctor's office and was asked if I'd had the CAT scan that had been ordered. No one had told me of it, I said and went over to pick up the paperwork.

The order was dated for eight months previous, the time of the MRI. The reason given for the CAT scan order was "possible 1 mm aneurism on cerebral artery." I nearly died of shock. For 8 months this was floating around in my file, I possibly had something in my head that could be fatal and no one had bothered to tell me. When I confronted my doctor, she shrugged it off. "It's a very busy office," she told me. "Sometimes things get overlooked."

Luckily, the CAT scan was negative. I do not have a brain aneurism. But I could have.

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

19. In fairness to the medical profession, I'd state the following

An error in diagnosis which prompts a person to ACT is not a bad thing. Yes, she was beside herself, but there are far too many people who are ticking time bombs who are told to act on something and don't.

Pathology is one of the hardest areas of medicine and most hospitals now have a TEAM of physicians look at the slides.

Same goes for xrays...many doctors are competent at reading radiographs but they aren't radiologists, and if you ask Ramsey...radiology is an art unto itself.

In this instance, an error caught itself by the usual avenues that it should since I would venture to guess even her MD suggested a second opinion (at least I hope he did...most doctors do recommend a second opinion when an illness is life threatening.)

[tavalon]

21. That is so horrible

I'm good with the idea of killing all the doctors. I've had that thought on many an occasion.

I am so sorry that happened to her. How awful!