My feeling is there is no easy way, but I admire the fact that you let a patient know yourself. I, personally, think you went above and beyond by informing him as soon as possible. Most doctors would have waited until after the weekend. 

MY NP diagnosed it early and, to my thinking, is responsible for saving my life.

      Have to tell about an elderly my cousin. Was diagnosed with lung cancer about 1 1/2 yrs. ago and told she had no more than 6 months to live. Due to her age and the short time diagnosis she decided not to do chemotherapy. Last week she had a check up and scan and then told her there was no cancer. Sure would be stressful to live with the knowledge that you were on a short rope all that time. What if she had gone ahead with the chemo? Guess the  moral is to always get another opinion if there is something that could be serious going on.

As for if I'd want to be told if I had cancer, who would? But you know what, after watching the woman I've known and loved more than anyone else in my whole life go from being totally fine to dead eight months later, my bond with my mother is even stronger. She's with God in Heaven, and some day I will be too. I'm awestruck by how much she wanted to fight. When we finally got a doctor to tell us, her words were "Don't give up on me. I'm going to beat this". I'd love to be as strong of person as she was. I think I'd have probably fallen apart completely. But, the doctors not telling her for what seemed like an eternity really dragged her down before she got the news. You did the right thing.

But I have been on the patients end of this conversation back in the summer of 16, THE SUMMER FROM HELL.Without all the tests first guess was hepatis's . Tests came back as not that. With another week of tests gallbladder not working. Sent to a surgen to remove it, he wanted more tests. By luck a new machine a hour away and a very good doc to run it. He put a stint in my baile duct and sent me home. But very weak and miserable, turned out all the hardware poking around set off pancreatitis. But not know this called the surgeon, he took a quick look and and looked at more test numbers. HE drops the big one on me  you have pancreatic cancer . What do we do, you have only months left was his answer. His next wards are I have friend at Stanford needing test subjects let me call him. Walked out of his office in shock, but having big doubts. My wife was looking after her mothers estate and needed to look for papers in a safe deposit box. I about pass out in the car. She hauls me to hospital to get things under control. They get on the phone to the doc who had looked around inside. He had sent me home saying nothing to big wrong. I am sure he told the hospital that, but they pushed the lab where he had sent a sample for biopsy. NO CANCER thankfully only hours after the news I was almost dead already.

The problem where far from over. But with the bile duct open and pancreatitis under control I started to feel better than in the last month. All doctors but the surgeon who was to remove the gallbladder where lets get it out of you.  Should have insisted on another surgeon but being a small community by medical standards no a easy thing. Three week later he was ready. Told it would be laparoscopic and I would go home that night. When I awoke we have bad news did it by cutting you wide open, your here for a few day. After one trouble and another was 13 yes 13 day in the hospital.   BUT NO CANCER AND I AM STILL HERE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

But yes some doctors have no bed side manners. The story was no over yet ether.

The doctor that put the stint in  said it needed to be changed, which set off another case of pancreatitis, for more fun hospital time. Finally in spring of 17 the blockage in the duct was broken up and stint removed from bile duct. But pancreases was upset and almost sent me back to hospital again.

But after being treated like just another lab rat to have experiments run on. I will say thank you for your patient that you went out of your way to treat like person of worth. With the shock they are in I can see where they might of forgot the THANK YOU but I am sure will be thinking it at times.

   

 Not a easy thing to do but I also believe you did way more than most doctors.

Regards,

Chris

With all the stuff I have had to deal with there is only 2 doctors that showed any sort 

caring I guess you would say.

Of the dozens of doctors, nurses, technicians I can immediately tell who is on there game and who is not.

One in particular was when I had to go to St Louis on a clinical trial for melanoma, It was a teaching hospital. It was one of 4 in the country and that was the closest. The doctor and nurse were awesome but every now and again they would get students I guess in there and be a part of the 'once over check' before I got my shots. This one 'student' 

was looking in my ear and grabbed onto my earlobe and jammed that thing in there and I jerked back and told her to take in easy. She gave me the stink eye and did it again. So I jerked back again and said listen dammit, I'm not some dead pig you are practicing on. 

Anyway. Nicely done sir. I commend you.

  I agree with everyone else, the way you done it showed how much you cared about the person and going to his home on Saturday show how much respect & how professional you are..