A 2017 study of 286 patients conducted by the Mayo Clinic found that as many as 88% of patients looking for a second opinion will leave the office with a new or refined diagnosis. Meanwhile, 21% of the people will leave with a “distinctly different” diagnosis. Conversely, the study, which was published in 2017 in the Journal of Evaluation in Clinical Practice, discovered that 12% of patients will learn that the original diagnosis was correct. This means that one out of every five patients they saw was incorrectly diagnosed.

Getting a second opinion is an important part of becoming educated about a cancer diagnosis and treatment options and will also give you the opportunity to find a physician you are comfortable with, someone you respect and who you believe is paying attention to your needs

Get a second opinion if you have undergone treatment but your symptoms continue. diagnosed.

Get a second opinion if you are diagnosed with a rare disease

Get a second opinion if the recommended treatment is risky, involves surgery, is invasive or has lifelong consequences

Get a second opinion if you are diagnosed with cancer

Get a second opinion if your gut reaction tells you something is off

Studies make a case for getting additional medical opinions. In 2017, a study showed that 21% of patients who sought a second opinion at the Mayo Clinic left with a completely new diagnosis, and 66% were deemed partly correct, but refined or redefined by the second doctor

In most cases, your doctor will respect your wish for a second opinion and will be able to help you find another physician to consult.

Explain to your doctor that you want to be fully informed about your diagnosis, prognosis and available treatment options.

Ask your doctor to recommend someone else.

If you have a specific doctor in mind, ask for a referral to them.

If the second opinion matches the first, then you can now be confident with the diagnosis.

If it doesn’t match seek to understand why before you make a decision one way or another.