I was reading an article about diagnosing breast cancers on time.com, and was surprised. Medicine is not black and white, it is not about being sick or healthy, is not good or bad, as I used to think. Going through breast biopsy does not give you a simple answer and doctors do not agree on what the biopsy shows. Invasive cancer, non-cancerous biopsies, atypia, ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) are some of the possible diagnosis. That may be the reason that many breast cancer patients do not understand the details of their disease. Knowing your health challenges or risk factors can help you get better, feel better, and live better.

Approximately 12 million adults who seek outpatient care are misdiagnosed, according to a study published last year. With the high rate of misdiagnosing 1 out of 20 patients, what are the options we have? Sharing and looking for advice from friends and family; using Google to treat yourself; doing nothing and just taking one doctor’s conclusion for sufficient enough? I have done all of this. I had a doctor who wanted me to go under a surgery saying that was my only option. And I was scared. Scared of the anesthesia, of the results, and the recovery time. It was a matter of time for when to schedule the surgery.

What gave me a peace of mind was getting a second opinion at www.secondopinions.com. Family members are trying to comfort you, but in situations like that it does not work. Google results take you to different directions, and most of the time there is no credibility in what you find. And just seating and waiting for the time to pass, most of the time is an agony.

I went for another doctor’s opinion and instead of a snap judgment, it was the care I needed so bad. I found that confirmation as the relief I was desperately looking for. And everything fell into place!

How often do you need medical second opinion?