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Originally Posted by jade01
I would've thought the secretary would have been a little more sympathetic when i called there today, but she was like we don't call you if somebody cancels, you have to call every day. I'm thinking maybe i should call my primary care dr and ask for another spine dr to go to.
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I'd hate to judge a surgeon by his staff; it depends on the setup (private vs. hospital/clinic, who makes that policy, etc.) but I hope you've had
at least a couple of opinions on this surgery anyway. If you're thinking of finding another, maybe the cancer team would be willing to suggest some others (e.g. who would
they trust/go to?)
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I have never heard of any successful back surgery, so I'm very leary of all of this. I was in physical therapy before and it didn;t help.
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There are surgical success stories, and I don't want to take anything away from them (I am
thankful for their success/victory
) - there should be more, but all the statistics/studies I've read seem to go the other way; surgery should only be considered as
THE last resort, and even then only after multiple opinions, asking about each surgeon's success rate with your exact procedure, patient referrals... You can use the net, your ins. carrier, anybody you can think of (your cancer team?) to check them out. Most surgical mistakes cannot be undone.
Like doctors, not all physical therapists are created equal, and I've run the gamut with them as well. If you've only done one course, consider trying another one with a different therapist - one more experienced/specialized with your particulars. You can ask/call around and find out - it's worth it.
There are still
many other options to investigate before surgery, and Ginnie is right about a pain specialist getting you through things while you try other options. Unlike the cancer, you've got some time on this one. Heal... rehab... get things together.
Doc