| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| Mexico |
Posted - 09/07/2007 : 12:14:42
I went to the dermatologist today and want to share about my experience. That was my first meeting with a dermatologist. I had my appointment since June but could only see him today. He was seeing patients every 5 minutes - that's 12 patients an hour, whether you are a new patient or for a follow-up. He quickly said hello and asked me to sit on a special chair that puts my face at his height. He looked intensely at all my lesions and declared that he will burn them with liquid nitrogen. Which he did with my permission. It took less than one minute.
He assures me that the lesions are pre-cancerous and not BCCs. This is interesting since 3 different doctors (regular MDs - not dermatologists) told me they believed they were BCCs.
The dermatologist said to come back in 4 months and protect myself from the sun in the future with a hat and sunscreen. He expects that the present problem should be completely handled with today's treatment.
I asked him how he could tell in few minutes that the lesions were not BCCs and he said that he does not have time to give me a class about cancer dermatology but that he has studied for 11 years and practised for just as many years afterwards doing this every work day and he says he is absolutely certain this is precancerous and that the Nitrogen burning should clear it up completely.
So I am puzzled. He looked and sounded very competent. Plus he was actually a pleasant and warm fellow. But I find it rather frustrating that he only spent 5 minutes with me after I had to wait 3 months. But then I prefer few minutes with a highly competent doctor than hours with someone who does not know what he is doing.
I am curious - what has been your experience with dermatologists?
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| 5 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| Martha1 |
Posted - 09/24/2007 : 19:17:41
Mexico, I had my first visit with a dermatologist on 9/20. I described it on my thread about “my experience with topical treatments.” I'm giving a shortened version here:
quote:
I found him to be a very pleasant, friendly, and professional young man. My husband went in with me, and the doctor sat down for a little chat with us before doing his “thing.” As he examined the spot on my nose, I told him I had been using Cymilium. He said he had never heard of it, so I showed him the cardboard wrapper and one of the little un-opened packets. He looked them over without comment.
He quickly checked over my arms, legs, and back. I pointed out a few questionable spots, and he told me the name of each type and said that each was common and harmless. Then he took a biopsy of the spot on my nose, which showed NO SKIN CANCER. He diagnosed the spot as an actinic keratosis, which he then “froze” using liquid nitrogen.
Note that he spent much more time with me. Even the one spot he treated probably took more than one minute. He froze a fairly large area around the biopsy site; I don't know why. He didn't act as if he were rushed. I know he is busy, because of the time I waited for the appointment. Maybe someone else canceled, giving him more time that day. I didn't ask any tough questions, so I don't know how he would have reacted to them, but he made an effort to explain everything as he went. (I'm thinking of questions to ask during my follow-up visit, so will let you know what happens.) |
| anivoc |
Posted - 09/08/2007 : 10:38:02
Hi Mexico,
Your experience is not the norm in comparison to my visits to derms in my life. If a doctor told me he didn't have time to explain I would be very suspicious. I would have hit him with questions like .. Since you are such an expert I'm sure you are willing to sign a document stating that every lesion on my face today is not anything more than an AK and the best treatment for these is cryosurgery?
He sounds like a pompous creep to me. Your the patient..the one that has to go home with the problem and need some confirmation that the Doc knows what he is talking about.
Always question the doctor when you are not sure.. If he not willing to at least try and give you the answers you need to know then he is not qualified to be your doctor.
If you had a plumber come to your house to fix a drain. He told you what the problem was and what he was going to do to fix it. Then you asked him a question and he came back with the the "I don't have time to give you a lesson in plumbing 101, wouldn't you be insulted.. I would.
There are many fantastic doctors out there. They are not Gods and not one of them is perfect. They have a tremendous responsibility to stay on top of what is going on in their field. Sadly many / most don't. They get comfortable in what they know and become complacent.
I have a customer who is considered one of the finest Oncologist in Los Angeles. She is brilliant but when I told her about bloodroot she looked at me like I was a witch doctor. She totally dismissed the idea that there could be anything out there that a lay person could use that would work better than modern medicine can conjur up.
Personally when my wife and I choose a doctor it is because we know they are in the game and still passionate about what they do. 18 years ago my wife needed a hip surgery. We went, were prescribed and asked "QUESTIONS". Those questions led us to a new cutting edge surgery that was 180 degrees different from what the original prescription was and gave my wife a whole different surgical experience, far better recovery time and a much longer resulting repair.
She goes in at the end of this month for a new cutting edge hip resurfacing surgery. We just didn't go down to he local orthopedic for advice. We researched the net for several months before making the decision and finding the right doctor in our area. had we gone to the local orthopedic this option would have not been offered. They would have done a total hip replacement. This would have resulted in a sub par option in todays world. More drastic bone removal and far less expected longevity.
Personally If I was you I would find a dermatologist that had a better bedside manner. |
| Mexico |
Posted - 09/08/2007 : 10:18:50
Dan - I know this is not the end of the story for me. I do have many more smaller spots on my face. He just took care of the larger ones. But if it is in a state of pre-cancer, it should be easier to treat. So I am pursueing what I was doing with the smaller spots. So far 6 to 8 of them have virtually disappeared. Those were small. The larger ones, in particular one that was more than 1/4 inch diameter was not getting much better in spite of raspberry cream, PDQ Herbal, Sunspot ES, Balck Ointment (without bloodroot), broccoli, various herbal stuff including aloe, etc. That larger spot would seem to get better and then flare back up again. The dermatologist burned that one - I'll see if it holds. Anyway, I am glad I went and I hope this cryo-burning is efficient. The burnt spot does not look too bad this morning, I expected a bigger skin reaction.
As far as diet, I am too a big believer in nutrional support for all types of cancer both as a preventive and as a helpful aid in healing. Omega 3, lots of veggies, some berries, seaweeds, all whole food and organic if possible. No trans-fats, very little red meat, no prepared meat at all, no soft drink or junk food in general. My diet is clean and I feel healthy. I am not taking any drugs at all - neither medical or recreational. I do drink small quantities of high quality red wine (organic again if available) but I have noticed that if I drink a glass of cheap wine, it does flare up in my face. Nothing like that with the organioc wine. Might be the high level of sulphites in regular wine. I went to an Art Exhibition opening last week with my wife and the wine was poor quality. I only had 2 small glasses but I saw and actually felt in my face within a few hours. Anyway, each person has its own definition of a good and healthy diet. This seems to work well for me. |
| dan |
Posted - 09/07/2007 : 23:41:05
Mexico, thanks for sharing the results of your appointment. I think it is great that you went to the dermatologist. I hope it works out as well as he said. Doctors are sometimes amazing at fixing problems. I've been to three dermatologists and they were all pleasant, warm, and competent. Thank God we have them.
Sometimes treating skin conditions is as simple as in your case, but then you have the folks that have to schedule skin cancer surgeries every month. I don't want to be one of those people and I certainly felt I was on track to be one. I'd rather place proper emphasis on prevention with the benefit that the measures taken such as diet to stop skin cancer will also apply to other cancers and usually promote general health. Just with your example of 12 patients an hour, skin cancer is out of control. His advice to wear a hat and sunscreen will fall short witnessed by continuously rising skin cancer statistics. I think people are listening to the sun awareness mantra, the problem is it just does not work.
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| fforest |
Posted - 09/07/2007 : 13:30:18
But I find it rather frustrating that he only spent 5 minutes with me
Why do you think most Dermatologist are rolling in the dough.... |
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