@barbjh Welcome to our Forum .. glad you found us! Do you have a first name .. Barb? .. more personal. I agree with Colleen .. my understanding is that at Mayo the doctors work as a "team" and do consult. I also see Dr. Aksamit and have since 2007 .. from working with him I get a strong sense that the decision to start or NOT start antibiotic for a doctor is like putting a BIG puzzle together .. the components are CHANGES IN: Xrays .. sputum culture .. CT scans .. pulmonary function tests .. AND my responses to his VARIOUS medical questions. He then puts it all together and decides if I need to come back in 3 mos .. 6 mos .. 12 mos. It ALL depends on the changes .. ie progression of the disease .. and ONLY the doctor can put that puzzle together! But THAT is the importance of proper frequency of follow up appointments .. the mycobacterium is a sneaky critter that needs to be watched and followed! You do NOT want to start antibiotics if you do NOT need them .. BUT when/if you need them .. START! When I was diagnosed in 2007 this Forum did not exist .. I was a "lonely only" .. it was SO scary .. I felt SO alone with so little information that I refused treatment UNTIL I got a second very serious "abscessus" type mycobacterium .. bad news .. I always regretted refusing treatment initially .. it then took 30 months of 4-5 antibiotics to get rid my MAC. SO @barbjh , my advice to you would be .. listen to the Mayo doctors .. do NOT go on antibiotics until you NEED them .. then if you do need them .. trust the experts. That is what I would do if I was in your shoes .. Mayo is "Mecca" .. people come from all over the world .. why wouldn't we trust them?

In terms of the Bronchiectasis .. they should be able to tell from the Xray I THINK! I agree .. you should be aware of this medical condition if you have it.
Hugs to you! Katherine