First, let's say you are doing nothing wrong in following the advice of your doctor. But, MAC/MAI/NTM is a rare infection, and not that many doctors - even experienced pulmonologists, have treated it often.

My original pulmonologist 7 years ago had treated over 2 dozen cases in the course of his career. That sounded like plenty to me, so I relied on him. Turned out, he had not kept really up to date on treatment options, took offense when I started asking questions, and fired me when I consulted an ID doc.

My current pulmonologist (in the same clinical group but another location) has treated MAC & Bronchiectasis patients in the hundreds, participates in clinical studies, research and panels with Mayo and National Jewish Health.

The "gold standard" in treatment is for the pulmonologist to order sensitivity testing of the infection by the lab after the culture is grown. A selection of antibiotics are applied to little plates with the infection growing in media on them. Effective antibiotics kill the bacteria and the lab reports the results back to the doctor. Meds are prescribed accordingly. Do you know if your doctor is doing this? If so, it takes 8 weeks or so for the results to come back after you submit the specimen.