MovieChat Forums > 50/50 (2011) Discussion > Conversation with the doctor

Conversation with the doctor

posted 9 years ago by dutchbb-244-695391
6 replies | jump to latest

No way a doctor behaves like that in such a situation talking to a dictaphone and using difficult medical terms, this is very unrealistic and offensive to oncologists. As a patient you do not respond like that either, I know from experience. Your mind does not wander away, instead you feel anxious and overwhelmed and fully concentrated on what the doctor says. This is such Hollywood garbage this scene.

The rest of the movie was mediocre at best. It's supposed to show a struggle to beat a disease according to the description, instead it's mostly about relational problems with a bit of comedy mixed in between. IMO this movie would have done much better without the comedic aspect and with more focus on the suffering of the patient. This is a missed opportunity 7/10.

[–] bbfrmrp 9 years ago

I have had specialist to that or almost like that. I keep trying to remember that surgery people spend months sewing up grapes and other small things. They are not people doctors. I always feel like a piece of meat they want to operate on.

[–] DarkStormyNight 9 years ago

Yes, some doctors truly lack bedside manners and do not know how to break things down into less complicated terms. While surgeons often get a bad rap for lacking bedside manners, other doctors can as well. From what I was told, my father's first oncologist was indeed rather cold, and wanted to push clinical trials more than giving other proven options.

As for a person's reaction...that all depends on the person. For you, it did not. I have seen others say their mind did just that.

Also, I think if a doctor is being cold about it, and talking in medical terms, a person's mind is more likely to check out, than with a warming doctor who chops it down to layman's terms.

[–] mmserrano4 8 years ago

Actually, lots of doctors do. It's a stereotype for a reason, they talk monotone and treat people unlike people because they're inferior or broken objects to be fixed.

Communism was just a Red herring!

[–] BrunoAntony 8 years ago

Are you serious?

Doctors, particularly older ones, have minimal ability to relate to patients. They are weird ... it comes with the territory.

I've literally just been through the situation in the film with an oncologist who wouldn't look me directly and spoke in a monotone. He only become engaged when I started reading off a list of questions I compiled.

Will I punch one of these dudes out before the end of the year? Definitely!

[–] too_tired_for_this 8 years ago

I remember when I was told I had cancer. The surgeon talked to me for 20 minutes about my surgery before he told me that I had cancer. The feeling of why this guy waited for twenty minutes to tell me that I had cancer? Then he's pushing this doctor on me like he was a used car salesman. I was in shock!

If I was Rich, I'd be a couch potato...

[–] too_tired_for_this 8 years ago

I remember when I was told I had cancer. The surgeon talked to me for 20 minutes about my surgery before he me that I had cancer. The feeling of why this guy waited for twenty minutes to tell me that I had cancer? Then he's pushing this doctor on me like he was a used car salesman. I was in shock!

If I was Rich, I'd be a couch potato...