I went to see my oncologist today to get the results of the scan I had at the end of last month. When I walked into his office he said that he was concerned that I hadn't had a scan and needed to have one as soon as possible to be able to continue on the trial drug.
I was confused and explained that I was there to get the results of the scan I'd had 2 weeks previously. He looked on the computer again and eventually found the scan and also found that it hadn't been interpreted. He said that the computer was being clunky and he couldn't tell me anything. So no results today and no idea when I will get the results. So I'm feeling fed up, thanks for listening to me moaning!
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Julie2233
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Eww that is sooo frustrating. As if we don’t spend enough time going to doctors and hospitals. And the angst! To have to go thru it again! Having said all that, try to let it go. I am so not a person used to letting things go, but lately I’m really trying cause “s” happens. Here’s hoping for great results
Thanks and you are completely right. I'm usually laid back but this is new treatment with a trial drug and hadn't realised how stressed I was about these results! But feeling frustrated isn't going to get me my results any quicker.
Thanks Sandra. This is the first time I've ever seen the oncologist view a scan and the first time I've seen one since my MRI scan found the mets. Yes, he was looking for the liver met but couldn't find segment 8 of the liver so said I'd have to wait for the interpretation.
One of my first jobs was working for an industrial non destructive testing company where I had to type up the reports and I would often sit with the technician as he reviewed the x-rays of the components. If you know what you are looking for it's not hard. The fact that he couldn't even find the right slide hasn't filled me with confidence. I hoping he couldn't find the met because it's disappeared and not just because he's not competent 😊
I recently read an article where they said that most doctors cannot even understand the language used in a radiologist report of a CT scan. They use language that oncologists are not really familiar with as that is NOT their field of expertise. But that the last paragraph, the IMPRESSIONS paragraph, is the most important as basically it is a summary of the radiologist doctor's interpretation of the whole CT scan and their recommendations if something needs to be looked at again through more testing or biopsies, and is done in layman's terms so that the oncologist can read it and understand it better.
I just had treatment start pushed almost 2 weeks due to a missing lab test for HER2 results. I was so frustrated! Waiting after this kind of diagnosis is criminal, however, it did give me more time to get in a good head space for starting treatment. So like nstonerocks, I agree sometimes s happens and we need to be able to roll with it. We never know if things being delayed are actually for our own good results of something else. Best wishes while you wait!
Thanks 🙂 yes you are right. He’s authorised my next chemo without knowing whether it’s working or not. Things tend to take time with me to work so it means I’m getting more time for it to take effect.
Not moaning; duly annoyed and frustrated I’d say. Hope they get their act together ASAP and you’re back there soon for results. The waiting is horrible and I’m so sorry you’re having to deal with this.
Thanks Kathleen. It’s done me the world of good having a moan and getting it off my chest, and everyone on here has helped me get it into perspective 😊
Hi Julie,
I would be feeling fed up too! You took the time out of your day to go collect your results only to discover that you had a wasted journey. It's hard enough collecting results without also dealing with the stress of not knowing and having to go back. Hopefully you will get your results soon and they will show a good response to treatment.
LOL. That is how I think. For the most part, I am home most of day so a visit to the Cancer Center has become a "day out" for me also. Funny that someone else thinks the same way as me.
The anxiety is awful for us. I always have to ask mine for my results otherwise in the past he has said everything is stable. I dread every appointment I go to. So sorry this has happened.
Hi Julie, you have such good replies on here for your b.... annoying situation. Thinking of you and hope they sort themselves out quickly. Toss this to the back of your mind when possible and enjoy the moments when you feel good. Sending you hugs, daren"t do real hugs these days! Fayx
Yes, being able to vent to ladies who understand the frustration is wonderful. My husband just didn’t understand why I was so bad tempered when I got home.
So much good advice and I feel better just knowing that i’m not alone in this. 😊 Thats the beauty of virtual hugs!
Not fair! Can you call the clinic where you did the scan and explain the mess up....in the meantime another opportunity to practice positive thinking. I would expect a bit more sensitivity to your situation....once drive 3 hours to oncologist also was time to get results, was late and he left....I was finished...tried talking to explain on the phone just wanted to hear the answers, I that perhaps he didn't get just how much pressure and effort it takes to remain positive and calm before scan results. He explained that out if the office he didn't have access and sorry only first thing in the morning. I calmed myself down,accepted the situation and it is actually written in Divine sources ,every delay is for the good. A half an hour later, he called me and had arranged for another doctor to see me,just to access the results and that he would chat with me and the doctor to explain any questions! Real consideration. My personal feeling is if the doctor is truly competent etc I can ignore poor bedside manner...but we all deserve both in an ideal world.
Looking forward to good news from you and everyone! Good for you that you reached out....thank you for sharing something we all deal with.
He’s rude and dismissive - on his good days but he has a good reputation and now i’m seeing him at a different hospital he is better than he was previously. I think it’s frustrating because it brings it home that I am no more than a patient number to him. The only time I get from him is when i’m sitting in front of him as soon a I walk out of the door I cease to exist.
I do. I live in Upstate NY and am seen at the cancer center affiliated with the University of Rochester. My Oncologist is very good, very compassionate, she always seems to be on top of things. Even when she has bad news or when there are tough decisions to be made, I always feel hopeful and cared for. I am so thankful.
Well I would think that is true for most of us. But I am always mindful that I am not the only patient my onco has and I am sure she has some that are in worse health than myself.
I do not need her to be a shoulder to cry on (that is for a therapist), I do not need her to also, on top of everything else, manage my pain (that is why she referred me to a pain specialist), I do not expect her to advise me on how I can lose weight (she referred me to a nutritionist, etc.).
I also realize that they have loads of patients and in reality maybe we are just patient number 8973 or whatever. I just need her to do HER job which is to monitor my cancer and the drugs I am on. Sometimes I may have an issue and she will tell me you need to go to your primary for that since it has nothing to do with my cancer.
I am almost mindful of the fact that they have private lives, go on vacations and I do not expect that she needs to check with me or make me aware of what her private plans are.
My onco, unlike some others from what I read on these boards, does not respond to emails or phone calls during the work day as that day it is other patient's appointment day, so for that day, she is working or dealing with them. If she had to answer every email or call all of her patients back, she would not have the time needed to be able to see all her patients for that day and that she also has a private life, so when her work day is over, she needs to go home and relax. Because maybe that day she had to give a patient or maybe more than one bad news and they have to separate themselves, to a certain degree, from her patients so that when they go home, they are not carrying the stress with them.
They become oncologists I believe to help those with cancer but there has to be a line drawn somewhere so yes, once we leave our appts., they are done with us and worrying and looking at what they need to tell their next patient.
• in reply to
Hi,
I can see your point. I do not expect my oncologist to be my therapist, nutritionist, or my friend. So when I see her I specifically mention issues related to my treatment (my zoladex injections, letrozole and zometa infusions) how I'm getting on with all that and so on. I showed her some supplements I started taking recently and she wasn't interested. The only concern she once had was that I would adopt a completely alternative approach and stop my conventional treatment. But I assured her that was not going to happen.
I get that oncologists have to keep a professional distance from us, but we also rely on them to manage our treatment and to do their job correctly. Your oncologist should not be lying to you and blaming others for her mistakes. Like you, I would rather they just owned up to their mistakes.
Exactly that. youve hit the nail on the head. You'd think there would at least be a little prep before you get in there. Ive had the same experience and at a time when you need reassurances and answers, even if they cant give you exactly what you need, a little warmth and compassion goes a long way. Hope they get you back in asap with results. take care x
Very thankful that the hospital I receive treatment in has an internet site that automatically sends me the results as soon as they are available. Even if there's A lot of jargon there, I have a general picture of what is going on before I speak with oncologist. Very hard to sit with him and wait until it comes up on his computer.
Surely in this day and age....your scan could be sent elsewhere for a radiologist to interpretation!
I’ve gradually started to feel a bit better...not been out of the house yet and quite content with my books and dvds....I’ve had to make myself eat but have lost weight....I’ve ordered some whey protein powder that bodybuilder s use ...I can make shakes with fruit added in
I was thinking of maybe going for a swim next week to get everything moving but now with all the panic about Covid 19 I wonder if that’s wise...I love saunas as well
I won’t get back on my horse till I feel stronger...it’s not two weeks since my op....I’ve realised I’m not the tough girl I used to be!!
I lost loads of weight while I was on afinitor. It was the first time since my first diagnosis 4 years ago that I wasn’t ravenously hungry, I really liked that. I’m now putting it back on as when i’m eating I don’t feel nauseous.
I’m glad you are starting to feel a bit better. And it’s still early days. Back in the 1980s you’d probably still be in hospital.
I love swimming and saunas too. Have a feeling that if you do go you might have the pool to yourself
I would be absolutely furious! I have terrible scanxiety and cannot wait for my oncologist to call me with results. Immediately after my scans, I get on my patient portal and obsessively refresh the page until results appear. I discovered I was stage 4 this way, so my impatience has drawbacks. But too often these oncologists don’t realize how agonizing it is to wait for results that let us know if the beast is awake or sleeping.
I’m so sorry that he messed up. I hope you get GREAT results soon, and that your oncologist gets his act together from here on out.
Julie, I am sorry you have been put through needless extra stress. You should print this out to show him. He needs to understand how his patients feel. I am praying for good results. Blessings, Hannah
I'm very sorry. It leaves you with no confidence in the system and those within it. Can you move to a new provider? If you can, you may want to look into that.
Unfortunately, I think that it might be a case of out of the frying pan. I've already moved away from my first hospital because I just couldn't get to see my oncologist and I kept being lost in the system. I moved into the private sector for a while until my husband was made redundant and I lost the cover. I would have gone back to my first hospital but I knew that they wouldn't fund the ibrance I was on. There are another couple of hospitals I can move to but they all have the same problems of too many patients and not enough staff or funding.
I am sure he must be the brother of my oncologist.
She forgets important things all the time and then blames "staffing issues." I have counted at least 15 times when she used the "staffing issues" excuse.
Last time I was so fed up (and nastier than usual) that when she started to say it again, I interrupted her and said "Yeah, I know it's the staff issues again, right." She look flustered and embarrassed. I just wanted her to know that I do not believe that excuse and remind her of how often she uses that when it is usually her own fault.
I would much prefer her to say Omg. I am so sorry. The results came in last week but I have been so busy, that I have not had time to read it. I could deal with that. They are human, but I cannot deal with someone who constantly blames others for her own errors or lack of keeping on top of things. I know she is human but when someone repeatedly uses the same excuse, I tend to lose respect for that person.
So sorry this happened to you at a time you need reassurance ! I do know there is a shortage of high level radiographers and it takes much longer in the U.K. to get ct scan results on the NHS because of this ...in fact my last ct scan was sent out for interpretation ( from Yorkshire to Shropshire !) in the summer last year ...it says who interpreted it and where at the bottom of my one page scan result . I had had the previous two scans interpreted by the same local radiographer , so it must be the increased workload at the time. I am due another one in April , but don’t get to see my onc for up to 2/3 weeks after, obviously allowing time for the scan to be interpreted , as well as the high workloads of the oncs . I really hope you get some good results to make up for your poor experience ! Take care ! x
My cancer center is huge and apparently has won many awards for their breast and cancer center. They have people specific for everything, all in one place. I think that at my cancer center, most of the oncologists are overbooked with patients. I read once (but not my specific center but in NY in general), that they are supposed to spend about 15 minutes with each patient in a day.
My pain specialist, who I was referred to by my onco, explained to me (when I mentioned the lady that is always there and clearly not a nurse or resident) is a scribe. She said many oncos use scribes in the center (I thought maybe mine was the only one) to take notes about conversations between the onco and the patient this way allowing the onco to focus solely on the conversation between onco and patient without having to constantly input things that I may complain of feeling into the computer, thus taking time away from me so I get that.
I actually like and prefer that the radiologist doctors (that whole dept. is in center also) actually do their interpretation of the results since they are very experienced in that area. That is also why my CT scan results are usually done and prepared for the onco the very next day. A radiologist technician told me there are very few times when the radiology report is not ready the very next day for the onco. He stated that that is rare. There is no waiting for two weeks for results, they are always ready for review the very next day. If the oncos at my center had to do that also, it could be two or more weeks.
I have never had my onco review film scans with me. They do not even that kind of equipment in the rooms in which they come to talk to the patient. (Like in movies, they put the scans up for a patient to see.) I am fine with that bc if I am told I now have mets in my spine or another part of body, I just need to know where. I do not need to actually see my black or white mark on my scan to show me that is the cancer. I guess it all depends on the size of the Cancer Center which one goes to.
I see many mention that their primary doctors give them their injections or does their blood work. That is not something that here in New York that primary doctors do or that the oncologist would expect me to get shots from him/her.
I assume that all cancer centers have different protocols in the way things are done.
That is poor!!! I believe I would find a new doctor. My oncologist calls me the same day I have scans. He always says I know you worry!! Which I do. Find you some one like him. We should never have to feel the way you did!! Love you!!!
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but he has a good reputation and now i’m seeing him at a different hospital he is better than he was previously. I think it’s frustrating because it brings it home that I am no more than a patient number to him. The only time I get from him is when i’m sitting in front of him as soon a I walk out of the door I cease to exist. 
Scan results
Scan results are in!!
Ned
Feeling on top of the world
