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[ Music ]
>> I love the water,
I love to dive.
I wanted to dive for many,
many years and I make a point
of getting out whenever I can,
but that's something
that I will look forward
to when I get out of treatment
to get back in the water.
I'm Andrew.
I've been living in Seattle
for all my life and I'm married
to a woman named Paola.
It's almost 13 years now for us
and we have a daughter named
Sophia, she is six,
and a son named Jun,
he is almost three.
When I came out of surgery,
I met with an oncologist
and he told me
that I had some sort of cancer
and we discussed
that specifically I had
Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma.
And then when I asked what
that meant for me,
he was a little bit hesitant
to tell me much
and that was a little bit
frustrating for me.
It's been a bit
of a challenge the last five
years trying to get the type
of data that I have been looking
for prognosis-wise
where I think I am getting led
down the path
of the appropriate treatment,
but I still want
to have more information
about what--
how I fit into those statistics.
So, I have been
with an oncologist
for about five years
and a very nice gentleman
who has helped me quite a bit,
but in terms
of the way he delivers
information to me, at times,
we've had it hasn't been quite
what I had been looking for.
>> Early in my career,
I could see
that patients weren't
necessarily being told the
whole story.
I felt like they didn't have a
chance to bring their own
strength into the equation
and because
of that I really wanted
to change the paradigm
of what we do as physicians
when we are with patients.
>> I remember my first
conversation with Dr. Back
and it was a very,
very nice conversation
and I happened to be
over at the hospital getting
some treatment,
he was the attending physician.
And I asked him
for some information
and for some help
and he took the time,
he sat down
and he answered my questions
in great detail.
So, at times I haven't received
information
from my primary oncologist.
I have asked for information
from other folks
and luckily I have been able
to receive what I have been
needing without needing
to switch doctors
or that type of thing.
>> You know, I saw doctors
who are really kind
and well-meaning who are trying
to shield patients
from their real situations
by giving out only little bits
of information
and allowing a kind of fiction
to go on about how serious their
situation was.
I felt like that wasn't
good preparation.
So, that's where I feel
like the way we communicate
with people is part
of the treatment that we give
and part of the care
that we give.
>> I think a good idea if it's
possible is to speak your mind,
ask, you know tell your doctor
what you are thinking and say,
this is what I would
like to hear from you.
Is this something
that you feel you can share
with me?
If you learn
that there's not going
to be a fit, then you can ask
for assistance
in finding someone
who would be a better fit.
>> And I think most doctors,
if you give them specific
instructions
or if you give them enough
guidance about what's working
for you or what's not working,
they'll do it.
I think they are often hesitant
to offer too much information
because they think it's going
to be too much for you.
So, in a way,
you have to tell them, you know,
I can deal with this.
>> My son still is young enough
to not really understand
too well.
My daughter is old enough
that she is concerned
and she just tells me with
some irregularity
that I wish you weren't sick
papa, but I just tell her I'm
taking medicine
and I just leave it at that,
make it real simple for her
because I still have a cure
right around the corner,
so that's what I cross my
fingers for
and we leave the discussion
at that.
[ Music ]