Terry had an appointment today with the urologist.  He’s been having some blood in his urine that continues to come and go.  They did labs and a urine sample, and he’ll go back in a couple of weeks to get scoped and look up into the bladder.  Hopefully we’ll hear back fairly quickly on the PSA, and whether it’s elevated from last year.  They’re leaning towards chronic inflammation, or prostititis as the culprit, but have to rule out the chance it’s cancer in the bladder or urethra.

Interestingly, as we waited for the doctor to come in I was reading a magazine article talking about the increasing number of patients who cannot get a conclusive diagnosis.  There are approximately 23 million Americans who cannot get an accurate diagnosis of their medical problem.  I know that Terry has never had a condition that was easily or quickly diagnosed, but the number 23 million seemed staggering to me.

That’s 23 million people, as well as the people around them, who are dealing with chronic health problems of an undiscovered cause.  I know the frustration we’ve endured trying to get a diagnosis, or at least an idea of the cause of Terry’s vomiting.  I know that when they’ve been unable to tell us what he’s experiencing, they’ve attempted to deflect their inadequacies at diagnosis by making it Terry’s fault.  If they can’t figure it out, it must be because it’s psychosomatic, or all in his head. I had no idea there were so many other Americans out there dealing with the same disruptions in their lives, not knowing why something was happening to them.  It’s the type of club you shouldn’t want to join.

It’s a sad commentary, in light of what health care costs are in this country, that there is such a level of substandard care.  The article listed 3 reasons it’s difficult to get a diagnosis in difficult cases.  One is the result of medical school training that says to look at the most common reasons for the symptoms being exhibited.  It also talked about a reliance on labs and testing, and finally, the overuse of specialists.  It’s easy to see how the that trio of actions can work together against the patient if it’s a rare or unusual condition.  If doctors only look at what labs and testing can tell them, and if specialists only consider their discipline, it’s going to limit options.  When a doctor only considers those conditions that are more common, it’s hard to get that thinking out of the box.

I’m sure there are no easy answers, but I do know that it requires extra vigilance on those who have health concerns, and those who care for them, to keep pushing until the diagnosis is made, and correct.  There is no hope for effective treatment when you don’t fully understand what you’re treating.

So as we enter yet another phase of finding out what we’re dealing with, I encourage you to keep pushing when necessary, to get the answers you or someone close to you needs.  We have to advocate for ourselves and the ones we love when it comes to health.  There is nothing more important than your health, and nothing more worthy of your time than making it all it can be.

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