Radiology second opinion

Get a referal from your primary care physician to the expert you want to review your case. If the expert takes you for a second opinion the expert will generally request the materials he or she wants from your current specialist. At least that is my experience. Just made arrangements toget my materials to mayo for another set of thoughts about what to do next. Good luck!

If you don't need a referral you can schedule a consultation with a new radiation oncologist I prefer second opinions from outside the institution of the original read.

Datu, Good guidance from Billfarm, I am not sure which institutions you are wanting second opinions. I wanted one from UFHPTI (Jacksonville) and they allow self referrals for second opinions and consultations. What they did was have me sign a medical form and they got all my medical records send to them.

With that their department reviewed them and then did a consultation. I ended up doing my radiation treatments at UFHPTI as they offered proton radiation versus photon.
Good luck

Radiation Oncologists are not the physicians that interpret PET scans, MRIs or other Imaging. That is done by Radiologists. Speaking from experience as I practiced Radiology for 45 years including time at major medical centers where we provided second reads.

PsA staying at .021 for 4 months going to get rechecked again next month and A PSMA scan

Thank you. What is your address; we're sending you the scans.
I know that it is special training and skills to interpret those images and I've been to orthopedists who can't read them at all. But I have seen radiation oncologists who can. I have heard that with the new contrast Pylarify the reading is done by software. Is that true of a lot of cancer screens.
I do appreciate your reply. And ask in response. How does one grab the radiologist (whom we never see) or a different radiologist to get a reinterpretation.

My reply comes from this experience. The written report came identifying activity in a node. The radiation oncologist rated the unrated node as 2SUV, through his software. And so the indication of cancerous activity was equivocal. The radiation oncologist said he would radiate the entire nodal chain anyway. The surgical oncologist said he surgically remove the entire chain of nodes. The urological oncologist repeated the PSMA.
Without communication from the radiation oncologist to the urological oncologist there would have been more damage to the delicate structures of the prostate and surrounding nerves plus the loss of the nodes.
I'm happy that you are posting here and hope you make it a second career or at least hobby. You have extremely important knowlege that will be invaluable to all of us.
Congratulations on your retirement.

I stand partially corrected by retired doc. If the scans are of good quality another radiologist might see something missed without a do over by a new radiation oncologist. also hope we can learn from his life of experience in radiology. Thanks

@retireddoc Thank you for your response. I have called around different places and looks like you need a doctor referral to do this. I am meeting MO at a different facility - could I ask them to request it and get a second read?

Appreciate your response. I just retired this year because of symptoms related to treatment of my prostate cancer, otherwise I would still be practicing. I enjoyed it.
To add to a couple of your comments:
Computer software does assist the Radiologist in interpreting a number of Imaging studies including some screening exams such as 3D mammograms and CT scans for lung screening. They assist the Radiologist but aren't always 100% accurate and don't generate a final report. I believe one day AI will do the complete interpretation but this is years away.
Some specialists are quite good at interpreting their own exams pertinent to their special, eg. neurologists and neurosurgeons frequent look at their own head CTs and MRIs; orthopedic surgeons look at plain film of bones and MRIs of joints and Radiation Oncologists look at PET and other Imaging pertinent to their treatment.
At major medical centers and larger, more sophisticated hospitals there are meetings held called tumor boards. I joked one time after a tumor board that you don't ever want to be presented at one. As fate would have it, my case was presented at tumor board at a major medical institution a year and a half ago! This a conference where all the pertinent specialists get together in one room and your history and Imaging is presented and the best course of treatment is discussed. Typically, Medical oncologists, Radiation Oncologist, Urologist (for prostate cancer), Radiologists and so on attend. I have presented many PET, MRI, CT, bone scans etc at tumor boards over the years. It's a great way to get consensus treatment on complicated/difficult cases.
If you go to the website for the Radiology Department at the major medical schools they will sometimes note if they offer second opinion reads and how to go about it.
Good luck. Terrible disease and treatment (but all suppose all cancer patients feel the same about their cancer).

PsA stayed .22 for 3months going to order PSMA scan