To Ask the Doctors
There are always questions you should be asking your doctors, other than the obvious "Why did this happen to me?" Here is a list of some questions you should ask:
- What should I know from the very beginning?
- What are the normal treatment options available for brain tumors?
- What sort of tests will be given my child?
- How important is getting the correct diagnosis to determine the proper treatment?
- When do you recommend surgery? Radiation? Chemotherapy?
- What are the alternative treatment options?
- Regarding quality of life, how do you balance that and trying to save your patient?
- What is done to help a child with the pain?
- Is there a time you recommend to not to do any treatment?
- What are the most common brain tumors?
- Which ones have the worse prognosis?
- What should I do when I first find out my child has a brain tumor?
- When I meet with you for the first time, should I record the meeting?
- Should I tell the child about the diagnosis, especially if it is very bad?
- What is your role after all the treatments are done?
- For you personally, what do you find most rewarding about your job?
- Did I forget anything? Is there anything else I should add?
*I have asked a few of these questions to doctors. Check them out in the Interviews section.