The Value of a Second Opinion—Is Surgery Necessary?
It isn’t always clear what the best way to treat a medical condition is. A second opinion can help you better decide about surgery. That’s because you’ll be better able to weigh the benefits and risks of surgery against alternative treatments.
Betsy Ballard, MD, is a surgeon in Silver Spring, Maryland. She explains the benefit of a second opinion this way. A doctor may recommend that a middle-aged patient with gallstones have surgery. There might be several different reasons for that. The doctor might assume the patient wouldn’t want to spend years on the strict diet needed to manage the disease. Or the doctor might be thinking of the danger of recurrence. The doctor could also be concerned about complications. For instance, pancreatitis could develop if dietary restrictions did not treat the disease.
A second opinion, though, might show there are alternatives. For instance, the patient might be a candidate for medicines that may dissolve gallstones. As a result, a second opinion can help the patient make an informed decision about what would be best for her.
Arno Albert Roscher, MD, is a clinical professor of pathology. He specializes in diagnosing cancer. He says health professionals often need to seek another opinion. He says a specialist can identify 85 percent of regular tumors. "But if there is a glandular difference,” he says, “tumors are difficult to diagnose. They often need second and sometimes third opinions."
He adds that specialists need resources to confirm or dispute their findings. The California Tumor Tissue Registry is a network of qualified professionals. It was created for such specialized second opinions.
There are, though, times when emergency surgery is needed. For instance, it might be needed to sustain life. In a case of acute appendicitis, surgery must be done quickly and efficiently. The decision wouldn’t warrant a second opinion.
