text: Some good points @credenhill.
  
  But the wait times for diagnostics here in BC, including  colonoscopies here in BC can easily be 6 months or more.
  
  A few years back an ultrasound ordered by my GP for  abdominal pain specified that an MRI was needed for clarification. My GP referred me to a specialist (as my GP could not order the MRI), and I was looking at a wait of a  couple of months for just the initial consultation.
  
  The pain was strong enough that I could not work (let alone the stress of worrying about what it was), so I took out the credit card and paid for an MRI that was performed in days.  The specialist (who I had yet to see) did not suggest this - it was my own initiative.
  
  I  sent the results to the specialist, and on the strength of the MRI I had an appointment within a week, and surgery within the month.
  
  The system is broken.