MR. BMJ said:
I just want to mention, and this may or may not be the case, some doctors can really exaggerate this stuff. Maybe get a second opinion from a different doctor.
Very True !!!
I know your mind is racing right now, and you're imagining the worst, but you need to wait until you see the specialist before you jump to any conclusions.
On March 1 of this year an emergency room doctor felt like she could diagnose me from some tests that they ran on me. I was told that it looked like I had Transitional Cell Carcinoma (a form of cancer). She told me I needed a referral from my Primary Care Physision so that I could see a specialist.
Well, I got jerked around for almost a week before getting the referral because my doc wasn't in the office for a few days. From what I now understand, the doc who writes the referral gets $$ from the insurance co. So, for days I'm trying to go through the motions of acting normal around everyone while thinking that I'm really fucked. All I could think about was how I was gonna break the news to my parents, sister, and my closest friends and how it was gonna hurt them. Also kept thinking of all the things that I might never get a chance to do.
Finally on March 7th I got to see the specialist. He said that he really doubted that it was cancer, and that he wanted to do his own tests. A week later he went inside to see what was going on. Guess what --- No Cancer !!!
Listen to me. As hard as this may be, don't drive yourself crazy. Keep yourself busy this weekend. Don't just sit around thinking about this. Talk to the specialist on Monday and see what he says. His diagnosis is the one that counts. Not your regular doctor.
I still have to have surgery sometime next year when I have medical coverage again (employer went bankrupt while this was happening). There is a problem between my kidney and bladder that needs to be corrected before more damage is done to one of my kidneys. Luckily, I'm not gonna lose the kidney. Although, due to years of infection after infection (never had any symptoms), it now only functions at about 20%. The other one is fine by the way.
The specialist I have is cool as hell. He explained everything to me in simple terms that I could understand. He also answers any questions that I have. When you deal with the liver specialist that you're gonna see, I'd be really suprised if he isn't the same way. So, once again, stay calm and be patient. No amount of worrying is gonna make your situation any better.
Let us know how you're doing as this works itself out. My prayers are with you, and I know you're gonna be ok !!!!
dan