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iambatemanyesterday at 11:09 PM1 replyview on HN

Parent had a good question and this is restating what’s already been said.

_how_ do you advocate? If I could avoid delegating to experts, I wouldn’t be in the situation in the first place.


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preg_matchtoday at 4:59 AM

Ripped from another comment, I’ve gotten good at advocating for myself:

Do extensive research before hand. AI can aide research, but you have to prompt it right. Tell it to do web searches, and tell it to only use trusted vetted sources and papers.

And the approach here isn’t to take the research at face value. It’s to take the research and derive questions, and then ask your doctor. You can be aggressive.

I had a rare and very complicated surgery for my cancer. I researched it heavily, and going into the appointment I already knew how the surgery should be performed. I asked the surgeon many questions, including how often he performs this surgery, for how many years, and how many complications he has. He was a bit offended. I also asked him how he would do the surgery, and he told me a rarer, more complicated method that is typically reserved for pre-chemo patients (chemo melts your insides, makes some surgery more complicated).

I told him this was unusual, not standard of care, and that I was skeptical. And he methodically laid out why I was a good candidate even though I’ve had chemotherapy. The surgery was very successful, and he was a fantastic surgeon.

But you still have to push. And if you don’t get the answers you need, you go somewhere else.