The whole point of RAI over surgery is that it comes with less risk to the patient. Surgery is major…you are going under the knife. There are risks involved like infection. How about the surgeon damaging some other important part that is tangled up in there like your vocal cords?
If you are being scientific, you need to get a second and maybe a third opinion. I did. It didn’t make my decision any easier, but it sure helps to know that two doctors independent of each other agree on the tack to take. I am going to have to undergo RAI and I want to do it sooner than later. I am a young woman with children. My family depends on me. I am the glue around here, ya know?
Mayo clinic really was an excellent option for me. It was near my home (within a couple hours) and my insurance covered the visit (after co-pay). They confirmed that my doctor was following the expected regime for this disease.
The fact is that getting the medicine right is so subjective. It takes time. It makes you feel like a guinea pig. I know that I get tired of swinging from hyper to hypo symptoms. Regular blood testing and blood pressure testing really seems to help me. Everyone is so individual, though. I have some of the same fears about the RAI that you mentioned, but I am more afraid of what will happen to me (and by extension, my family) if I don’t get a grip on this problem.
I have been told by more than one doctor and numerous websites that surgery just isn’t our custom here in America. You may want to go to Europe.
There’s my two cents for what it’s worth.
