Nurse refused to acknowledge my results from a foreign oncologist :(

[Onlyrainbows]

I'm fuming and have already complained with PALS... So I had a biopsy taken a month ago (nurse colposcopist). A few weeks later, I go back to visit my family abroad and to understand their protocol (and to put my mom at ease) I go to see a gyneo-oncologist. The doctor originally explained that what the NHS nurse had said was fine and that it was all OK and should be fine to be seen in 12 months. Just before we were about to leave her office, she suggested she checked, after all I was already there. So I did. She performed a colposcopy and showed me that ultimately, my cervix had more severe lesions than the original biopsy said. She mentioned the worst being between 2-6 o'clock and but the NHS only took one at 1 o'clock. She said she'd rather perform a cone biopsy ASAP but she knew I was leaving soon and getting the opening in the public hospital would take longer than a few days, but that she'd refer me to get it done around October.

I don't want to travel on my own to get it done so much prefer having all and any treatment here under the NHS.

So I called the colposcopy department and spoke with the nurse who performed the first colposcopy. Asking for a second opinion personally offended her and kept saying they were just trying to scare me (for what I don't know as the doctors over there don't benefit from it :/ ). She refused to do anything and that was that. Plus, I asked if they'd add the surgery to my medical record and refused to as well.

Ultimately I just wanted a second opinion (nothing else) but most importantly, she could have said exactly the same in a different way. Now I don't want to be seen/treated by her I think I'd have to go to a different hospital 70+mi away. Which I'm absolutely fine with, but do I request that to the GP?

I've already complained to PALS

I think you need to get your GP on board to help you with this and get the lead consultant in gynae to review this decision. It shouldn't be ignored on the say-so of one individual nurse colposcopist. You are entitled to a second opinion in the NHS. This is usually in the same Trust but you could ask for it to be at the other hospital giving grounds eg lost confidence in the department which is going to make you anxious because it is a sensitive personal issue because it's gynae etc so you would rather change Trust. Do you think that there could be an element of racism towards you based on yourself or the country in which the oncologist is based? If so you could cite that as well as unfortunately that does happen far too often. The PALS process might take a while which isn't good if you need prompt treatment. Yet another case where you are going to have to push back and be insistent when you are in a vulnerable position.

Thanks for the reply! I was actually think that there could be some racism in this saga. American studies show that my ethnicity has an incidence of cervical cancer which is 40% higher in comparison to white women (deaths are 30% higher). She paid absolutely no attention when I said I was an ethnic minority and the protocols in my birth country are tailored to the population.

Luckily, today I spoke to a GP of Pakistani origin and he was much nicer and understanding than this nurse would ever be. He also understood the difference in hierarchy between colposcopist nurse Vs onco-gynecologist doctor.

The doctor originally explained that what the NHS nurse had said was fine and that it was all OK and should be fine to be seen in 12 months. Just before we were about to leave her office, she suggested she checked, after all I was already there.

Why would the Dr say it was all fine and then suddenly suggest she checked? That's a bit weird isn't it?

It's not weird... (At least I don't find it weird). Ultimately I went to see her so she would tell me about the protocol in my birth country. She checked me as I was already there and she has a colposcope.

What she told me was fine is given the findings of the the first biopsy, I saw it as she wanting to reassure me. She gave me a full gyneo check up including my breasts.