4 Common Myths About Cancer Doctors

I read this simple but effective blog post today from MD Anderson's very nice Cancerwise blog, which I follow regularly. In it, Dr. Nikesh Jasani, who is a medical oncologist and Assistant Professor in the Department of General Oncology at MD Anderson, talks about four misconceptions that patients sometimes have about their oncologists:

1. "We don't want to be bothered with small stuff." I try to tell my patients that I would much rather hear about symptoms that they think are trivial or that make them nervous than find out they spent a long time discussing with family and worrying whether they should bother me in the first place.
2. "We don't collaborate." We could always do a better job with this one, but I make an effort to keep the other members of the treatment team in the loop, particularly with test results.
3. "We don't care about our patients' time." I hate running late and delaying the next patient. But when I'm in the exam room with you, I will do my best to give you as much time as you need to cover your questions. It evens out.
4. "We don't like you to get a second opinion." Never a problem.

Thanks to Dr. Jasani and the MD Anderson folks for sharing.