Below is an excerpt from Michelle's blog, ihavebuttwhat. No matter what doctors tell you, and how many times they 'dismiss' your concerns when it comes to your health, you have to be your own advocate. You know your body better than any doctor. If you are dismissed, still feeling sick, find another doctor who will listen to you. Michelle's tumor was found by an older doctor, not her young arrogant doctor.
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Michelle:
"In October of 2008, I started having fatigue symptoms and my legs were aching all the time, just to the outside of my shins. I felt full and had a lot of flatulence. My GP did blood tests and discovered I was very low in the B6 vitamin. When questioned, he said that it was not a symptom (to his knowledge) of anything, although I did read it could have relevancy to cancer diagnosis later. I told him after taking supplements, that I still was not well and asked for a colonoscopy because I had had previous ones and they had removed polyps and told me I should have them once every 3 years, but then when I saw another doctor, she told me not to come back for 5 years, which would have been in 2009. He refused to let me have one.
In March, I saw the doctor again about irritation in my anal area and he said it was hemorroids.
In April 2009, I did my own DRE and felt the lump was quite a bit bigger, then remembered what had happened the previous July. I went to the doctor, my own GP wasn't there, but I saw his colleague who told me it was most likely hemorroids and I insisted he set me up for a colonoscopy. When I called back a week later, they said they had not heard back from the specialist. I called the specialist's office who told me that they had not received the request.
Fearful of the competency of my GP's office, I went to a Walk In Clinic in a nearby town. The doctor was an older man, retired but volunteering his time at the clinic, he did a DRE, clearly told me I had a tumor and had me in to see a doctor in less than three days ... oh the difference between older humbled doctors and arrogant younger doctors who treat you like you are a hypochondriac! In the long run, I take responsibility for having not acted sooner on my own instincts, and I also feel the doctor who 'was' my GP at the time, needs to take responsibility for being so intent on keeping my records up to date and typing into the computer, that he didn't even listen to my symptoms. I recently was in the ER for another reason and overheard a patient that was registering for care say "I do not want 'Dr. so and so,' if I have to have him, I will leave and go to another hospital." Sometimes we are put in a place for a reason, if only to validate our experience with another. Oh, I had Mitomycin and 5FU - just wondering why that is not listed under Chemotherapy?"
If you are faced with an arrogant, dismissive doctor who doesn't even have the courtesy to listen to your concerns, run out of his/her office as fast as you can and find another doctor who will listen to you. Your life may depend on it.
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