Medical Advice from Gemini (LLM)

Doctor Google is a cliché - so I was interested as to how Gemini would advise me on a hand problem I have. Here is the prompt.

On my left palm I have two, just visually perceptible, circular lumps under the skin, each about one cm in diameter. They are placed horizontally, about two thirds of the way up the palm, roughly aligned with my two middle fingers. They are not painful and do not impede any aspect of hand or finger mobility; they have been very slowly getting more obvious over several months. What would be a possible diagnosis?

Gemini

“Unfortunately, I can't give medical diagnoses, but I can offer some possibilities for what the lumps might be and recommend the best course of action. Here are a few potential explanations:

1. Ganglions: These are fluid-filled cysts that often develop on the back of the wrist or the palm of the hand. They are usually painless and slow-growing, which aligns with your description.
2. Epidermal inclusion cysts: These are noncancerous cysts that form when skin cells get trapped under the surface of the skin. They can appear anywhere on the body, including the palms.
3. Lipomas: These are slow-growing, fatty tumors that are typically benign. They are usually soft and movable, and wouldn't cause pain.

In most cases, these types of lumps are harmless and don't require treatment. However, a doctor can confirm this and recommend monitoring or removal if needed.”

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Note (me)

Back in the 1980s I had such a swelling on the back of my left hand. Under my company's medical plan I was able to see a hand doctor who deployed the standard treatment: he had me put my palm flat on the table, then took a large medical book from his shelf and smashed the spine hard down onto the lump; smashed it.

I had no further trouble.