"If you are looking for a warm and fuzzy surgeon, Dr. Appel is not your guy. If you are looking for an EXTREMELY talented surgeon, he's the one. I attended his introductory seminar. It started at 5 and didn't end until after 9. He stayed until every last question was asked and answered. Extremely thorough. Always tells it like it is. There are A LOT of hoops to jump through before getting scheduled for surgey (aside from insurance.) It was annoying as I was going from one test to another, to nutritionist, etc. But after reading so many posts about surgeons who will perform the surgery with very little background health information as long as insurance or the patient can pay, I realized what a service Dr. Appel provides. He also provides monthly support meetings w/ a great phychologist. His bedside isn't cuddly, but I always knew I was getting the best care. He gets 10 out of 10 in my book. Only problem was his program manager Laura, who has since left. Yeah! She was awful."
