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Should I get a second opinion about surgery?

Aortic Aneurysms | Last Active: Jun 8 8:12pm | Replies (25)

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@cajsp

It might not take that long for you to get an in-person appointment with the Stanford cardiothoracic surgeon if you tell them the size of your aneurysm, and that surgery has already been suggested. Apparently they do triage patients by urgency...so if you're insistent you may be able to get in soon. Good luck!

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Replies to "It might not take that long for you to get an in-person appointment with the Stanford..."

Very encouraging!! I always get nervous and hesitant when making doctor appts, especially important ones. Mentioning size of my aneurysm and that surgery has been recommended wouldn’t have occurred to me actually! Duh! 🙄 So thank you so much for the advice and the nudge! Very pleased to hear that there’s hope for an appt sooner than later.

Just wanted to update with good news! I got an in-person appt with Dr Fischbein on July 2. He's the Stanford cardiothoracic surgeon who was mentioned and recommended. It's about a 2 hr drive for me to Stanford from Monterey, so not too terribly far. I'm so grateful for this opportunity and I feel very positive now about pursuing 2nd opinion. Can't believe I was even hesitant before! My fantasy hope is that he might tell me we can do "watchful waiting" for my 5.0-5.3 cm aneurysm with periodic CT scans to see if it's stable in size... The more realistic part of me thinks he will probably recommend surgery. But whatever the outcome, ultimately, I'm proud of myself for seeking additional expert consultation. Thanks for all who weighed in on the importance of getting 2nd opinion. All of the input convinced me to try! I'll update here with what Dr Fischbein recommends after my appt on July 2. Wish me luck!!