alt Hacker NewsThere is only one thyroid ... presumably you're referring to the two lobes.
There are generally clear discriminators determining whether a lobectomy or total thyroidectomy is called for. What is missing here is the detailed discussion with the two doctors of exactly why they were recommending their course of action and what attempts were made to reach consensus. "everyone wanted to believe" is not the way to go about such things ... but there's a good chance that the evidence favored the less radical course. A lobectomy has considerably less radical consequences and so is strongly preferred if a total thyroidectomy isn't indicated. But it's not uncommon for the pathology report of the removed lobe to indicate high-risk features that call for a "completion thyroidectomy", which is what your ex-wife had. It's not some nefarious conspiracy to make more money.
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wouldn't they do that at the time of the surgery as opposed to finishing one surgery and then doing it all over again later?
Thank you for the corrections and clarifications. It does still support the point that it can be hard for a layperson to make a call on which opiniom to adopt.
With "everyone wanted to believe" I was referring to the patient and family.
It was (is) difficult to get appointments with these doctors as they are fully booked months in advance and there was no opportunity to consult with them again or get them to discuss the case with one another. Hence the decision had to be made with the information that could be remembered from the consultations. (These days I always record all doctor's consultations for future referral, as memory / recall is of course notoriously bad.)