Sheryl

CEA is absolutely not a suitable screening tool and should never be used for that purpose. Not only will it not show presence of polyps, it will nto show many cancers and on the other hand will often be positive in the absence of cancer. " CEA is not recommended for screening or diagnosis of colorectal cancer. Sensitivity and specificity are both very low as levels are frequently normal in early disease and may be raised in many benign diseases and most types of adenocarcinoma.... CEA has poor sensitivity for diagnosis of early colorectal cancer, (3%, 25%, 45%,and 56% in Dukes stage A, B, C and D colorectal cancer respectively, at a cut off of 5 ug/L) Specificity is also poor, as many benign diseases as well as most types of adenocarcinoma can give rise to elevated CEA concentrations Therefore CEA cannot be recommended for a screening test in unselected individuals and cannot be used alone for diagnosing or ruling out colorectal cancer." http://www.nbt.nhs.uk › sites › default › files › G... Stool test for occult blood is better than nothing but nowhere equal to a colonoscopy. Further tests will be necessaery if it is positive, it will often fail to detect polyps, etc. Colonoscopy is still the gold standard for screening for colorectal cancer, and has the huge advantage of not only identifying but allowing for removal of pre-cancerous polyps.

Any of the benzos (valium, xanax etc) would likely work but these are controlled drugs, you cannot legally buy over the counter. If you do decide to take something I suggest to make it something you have taken before (or do a trial run) as some people have paradoxical reactions. And of course do nto plan on driving afterwards.

But is it a 50 (or 100k) COVID policy or a general insurance policy that includes COVID? In other words, can the liusted COVID policies still be used? BTW I think your agent may be wrong re people entering on O re-entry permits. Only COVID insurance has been required for that for some time.

"All travelers are required to purchase valid travel insurance that covers medical expenses including COVID-19 treatments of up to 50,000 U.S. dollars. The previous coverage required was 100,000 U.S. dollars." This seems to imply that a COVID only policy - such as shown on https://covid19.tgia.org/ is not allowed. Is that correct?

There are many, many possible causes of dizziness. It would help to know: 1. Name and dose of the prostate medicine you stopped and of the BP medicine you take 2, Have you recently received Astra Zeneca COVID vaccine? (Dizziness is common side effect)

Closer to 30K these days in Bangkok

Prices will vary not only with the hospital but also with the type of MRI (which part of the body, with or without contrast)

I strongly advise that you select an internationally issued policy and not a Thai issued one as the later can and will raise premiums based on claims history (by as much as 25% per year on top of age-related increases) , making lifetime guaranteed renewal meaningless as you can get priced out just when you most need your insurance.

Ultrasound is much cheaper so, assuming no other symptoms, could start with that

No, not normal. Abdominal ultrasound is good idea.

Ask AA about April Global, which is what I have and got through them.

If you have your own 800K there is little to no reason to use an agent.

Yes.

Moved to the CBD forum

As others have said -- entirely usual for US insurance policies to not cover costs outside the US. Even when there is provision for emergency care abroad it is usually timebound e.g. for trips of not more than 21 - 30 days. There is no US based insurance I am aware of that would meet the needs of an expat living abroad. You need to get a specific expat policy, of which there are many. If expecting to make regular (short term) visits back to the US, and needing cover there as well, Cigna Global's Close Care policy might be a good fit (issued by Cigna Global, not Cigna US). Buit whatever you opt for, get it through a good broker familiar with expat health care. I suggest AA Brokers, www.aainsure.net Or if you are in Thailand just temporarily, get a travel policy. If here for work, discuss the insurance limitations with your employer.

But apparently still inpatient AND outpatient...all outpatient not just the high cost outpatient things like chemotherapy and dialysis, day surgery etc. The outpatient part is the problem. That and the fact that: 1. Most Thai companies will not issue new policies to people over 65, and none will do so after age 75, making it impossible for much of the target group to comply with the requirement. 2. Foreign policies effectively cannot be used due to the wording of the required "Foreign Insurance Certificate".

The Queen's Hospital is part of the Srinagarind complex but only for cardiology. You need to go to the main hospital for dermatology.

It is not health indurance per se that is a rip off. It is the way the specific visa requirement is designed that is.

For both visa types the money must be in country to do an incountry extension. With the OA visa you can get up to 2 years stay (assuming borders are open as you'd need to leave & reenter to get the second year). For that initial visa and the up to 2 yrars it allows no need to move funds to Thailand. But aftet that to extend incountry you'd have to. Note the special health insurance requirements specific to O-A visa.

This specific product is not available in Thailand. Plenty of other creams are, however, and for bug bites any of the many creams that ocmbine an antibiotic with a steroid should work fine.

As above. Bleeding is a risk with any anticoagulant, no exceptions, and dark stool or easy bruising are key danger signs.

Bangkok Hospital in Bangkok has an open MRI.

Have you already tried Southeast Pharmacy? If no luck there then i suggest you order from https://medisafepharma.com/?fbclid=IwAR0NhUJUdRyIsNan4DSPwp5unqvoMuIbAIHhWelzlR5-P3E-b8jjLKYM6_Q

It does nto have anyone specif8ically specializing/expereinced in skin cancer as far as I know. Best dermatologist there is probably Asst. Prof. Charoen Choonhakarn who can be seen at Srinagarind or also at KK Ram Hospital

There are only a few foot specialists in Thailand. I recommend this one: https://www.bumrungrad.com/en/doctors/Bavornrit-Chuckpaiwong https://www.siphhospital.com/en/medical-services/doctor-biography?id=202