Triangle10 questions
How to read a study abstract before you trust the headline
A forwarded PubMed link, a headline that says promising. How to read each part of the abstract and what to bring to your care team. Not medical advice.
Answers
The questions I kept googling at 11pm.
Records, results, second opinions, insurance, trials. Short answers with the public source underneath. This is not the product FAQ, and it is not clinical evidence.
This is not clinical evidence and not medical advice. It does not replace your care team. Discuss anything here with your clinician before you act on it. Product questions are on the FAQ.
9 questions
Caregiver access to medical records: which route fits
When the front desk says your mom has to call herself, there's usually another door. Proxy portals, personal representatives, signed requests, and what a doctor can tell you without a form.
10 questions
Your HIPAA right of access, and what to do when it's ignored
The law says your records are yours to see. When a records office stalls past 30 days or says no, OCR spells out what they owe you and where to take it.
8 questions
Patient portal vs full medical record
The portal is the everyday screen. The fuller chart you can request under HIPAA can reach past what that screen shows.
9 questions
How to coordinate care with several doctors
When a PCP, specialists, and separate portals each hold a piece of the story: what care coordination means, why it fails, and practical steps you can take.
8 questions
Do Phase 1 trials use a placebo?
When a Phase 1 listing or consent form mentions placebo, comparator, or open-label, here is what those words usually mean — and how to check the study in front of you.
10 questions
What prior authorization means before care
Clinic says the scan is waiting on prior auth. Pharmacy screen shows pending. Here is what that approval step is, who usually files it, and what to do while the clock runs.
10 questions
Questions to ask your oncologist
A visit-prep list for the oncology room: diagnosis, options, side effects, who to call — so you do not blank when the clock is short.
10 questions
Biomarker and genomic testing
What tumour testing looks for, how it differs from inherited genetic testing, and why an old report can go stale.
9 questions
ClinicalTrials.gov listings
What the NCT number, the status words, and an empty contact field mean — and what a listing cannot tell you.
9 questions
Getting your medical records
Who can ask, what it can cost, what is left out, and what to do when something in the file is wrong.
8 questions
Insurance denials and appeals
The deadlines, what counts as urgent, who can file, and what it costs.
9 questions
Joining a cancer clinical trial
Referrals, placebos, cost, leaving, and whether you keep your own oncologist.
4 questions
Phase 1 cancer trials
Safety, dose, how many people, how closely they are watched. Not a test of whether the treatment works.
8 questions
Second opinions and appointments
Whether to get a second opinion, how to ask, and what to walk in with.
10 questions
Sharing medical records with a new doctor
How to ask your current provider to send the file, what the written request has to say, and how electronic records differ from paper.