Question

An 8-year-old man referred to you by his primary physician for constantly asking for medical testing that will prove his idea that he has cancer, even though the testing is all negative. The patient has been fixated on the fact that he has cancer for the last eight months. He scores excellent on the mental status exam and has no other history of mental disorder or depression. What would be your provisional diagnosis?

a) Hypochondriasis
b) Delusional Disorder
c) Factitious Disorder
d) Generalized Anxiety Disorder

Answer 1

An 8-year-old man who is fixated on having cancer despite negative tests and no other mental health issues would most likely be provisionally diagnosed with Delusional Disorder.

Step-by-step explanation:

An 8-year-old man referred to you by his primary physician has been constantly asking for medical testing to prove his belief that he has cancer, despite all tests being negative. For the last eight months, he has been fixated on this belief with no prior history of mental disorder or depression and scoring excellent on the mental status exam. The most likely provisional diagnosis would be b) Delusional Disorder, as the patient exhibits a fixed false belief that persists despite evidence to the contrary and no other signs of cognitive or mental health issues.