simon43

Between work contracts in Myanmar I would usually stay in Pattaya. Last time I rented a rooftop studio with private roof garden for 5k baht a month, about 400m from Tukcom. I enjoyed exercising on the beach promenade and of course sipping fresh coconut juice provided by the friendly beachchair touts! ???? I don't know about expensive transport. I thought 10 or 20 baht on the regular baht buses was OK... I decided to move upmarket, and although I'm in the UK right now, my new home is a 9k baht house in several rai of coconut plantation, just a few minutes from the beach on Koh Phangan ????

Well, I'm not addicted to sex and booze and I really enjoy my time when living in Pattaya ???? It is not compulsory to drink alcohol. It is not compulsory to throw money at loose women Pattaya is a very pleasant place to retire, due to low condo rents, wide choice of shops and restaurants, good hospitals (for a price), nice beach promenade etc etc.

Um, surely anyone in a swimming pool will be 'half-naked', unless you are Muslim.... Sometimes people misinterpret innocent photos...

Of course, it depends on your lifestyle, partner or not etc. My wedding tackle rusted up years ago and chopping off my balls would be a definite option at the end of the steps after prostatectomy and then radiation treatment, (should I actually be diagnosed with prostate cancer). Based on the stats, I would probably be about 80 years old before facing the choice of hormone treatment or chopping off my balls, and I would certainly opt for the latter, (based on my research), since it is such a simple operation and doesn't require ongoing hormone medications. BTW (slightly off-topic), I continue to be impressed by the NHS treatment that I'm receiving to diagnose and treat (if required) my suspected prostate cancer. Also, within 1 week of registering with a GP, I also received a home kit to check for bowel cancer (I sent off some poo to the lab...), as well as an invitation for a Covid booster. Both of these free of any cost of course ????

[quote] ... As a rough guess i would say the contracted maids/cleaners at our condo spend 50% of their time on any given day picking through the bins and retrieving the bottles, cans and cardboard. ... [/quote] Back around 2005, the maid in my condo building used to pick through my rubbish sacks looking for the pristine copies of hard-core porn magazines that I used to advertise in at the time..... the UK publisher would send me copies every month to prove that they had published the advert that I paid for. I think the maid got quite rich by reselling these mags! ????

In Koh Phangan, where I recently lived, many rental properties are offered at high rents - they are being leased by Russians from the Thai owners and then illegally offered as a sub-lease.

Just to update (I posted this information also in the health forum): I returned to the UK last Wednesday I applied to my local surgery as a new patient last Friday I was accepted as a new patient by Tuesday I had my first appointment with my GP on Wednesday who referred me to the urology unit at Royal Victoria Hospital, Blackpool I had my first appointment at the urology unit on Friday, with initial tests and medication That is pretty damn quick! Next will be possible MRI scan (if the scan data that I provided from Bumrungrad is not suitable), followed by biopsy. The weather is miserably cold, most people are obese, prices are obscenely high. Apart from that, Blackpool is lovely......

Good French name that.... presumably he is one of the French Arabs who ride their motorbikes around Patong, ignoring traffic rules etc.

... and to update my update, I just had a call from the hospital urology department, who have booked me in for initial consultation and investigation this Friday! I can't fault the speed and efficiency of their service ????

Update 15 Feb: I registered with a local doctor on Friday, was added to their system by Tuesday morning, saw a doctor today (Wednesday) and have been fast-track referred to the local urology centre for further diagnosis and treatment, (fast-track means 98% getting their first hospital appointment within 2 weeks).

In 21 years of living in Thailand, I have never drunk tap water ????. The authorities may say that it's safe to drink, but then they also talk a load of lying <deleted> as well.....

AFAIK, stinging nettle may be effective to reduce the size of an enlarged prostate (BPH), but has no proven effects on reducing, killing or slowing the growth of prostate cancer cells.

^^ Whose new rules? The language school or immigration?

My worst electric shock was as a teenager when I used to build valve amateur and pirate radio transmitters. I was zapped with about 2,400 volts off the anode of the transmitting valve. I literally flew through the air and landed in a crumpled heap on the floor of my bedroom!

Well, at least that wound looks well-cauterized....

Yes I agree - it is not a cure, but another step to prolong life if the prostate cancer has spread. I think the stats show that this syrgery prolongs life by on average 80 months. If one has prostate cancer that is wholly contained within the prostate, then a prostatectomy should give you at least 7 more years (stats tell me that 25% of patients have cancer reoccurrence after 7 years). Then zap it with radiation therapy and the stats suggest another 7 years, then chop your 2-veg off and another 9 years. If I go down this route, it seems that I might live longer than someone who never has cancer!! ????

Years ago I had an ED visa in Phuket to learn Mandarin Chinese, and I attended all my classes and study was going well. When I had to renew my ED visa, the IO said that he would test my language knowledge, but since he didn't know any Chinese he would test my Thai language knowledge instead!!

Which is why I don't understand why older men who require hormone reduction do not opt for orchiectomy (surgical removal of the testicles). This kills testosterone production stone dead, is a simple 30-minute local anaesthetic outpatient operation, and is a common procedure in developing countries where they can't afford Big Pharma hormone treatment.

Lao Kip!!

Your ears are the wrong shape....

I think doctors will not start cancer treatment unless they know that the growth is cancerous, and that needs a biopsy. I'm currently awaiting a biopsy in the UK, following my MRI at Bumrungrad which shows 2 small growths at Pirads 5 level.

I'm no doctor but I think an important point would be how fast your PSA value is increasing. My PSA was around 5 for maybe 7 years or so (slightly raised due to BPH), but I only visited the hospital when it jumped to 11.5 after I had no PSA tests for 2 years (stuck in Laos due to Covid). My MRI scan at Bumrungrad showed a Pirads level 5, but still wholly contained within my prostate. But time for further investigation and treatment,

The risk of being impotent and/or incontinent depends on if the surgery can spare the nerves outside your prostate. If the tumours are wholly within your prostate, then any ED or urinary incontinence should be temporary, but I guess it will also depend on your own health, whether overweight etc.

Concerning the NHS being on the brink of collapse, there is a huge difference between different departments, surgeries etc. In the case of cancer diagnosis and treatment, there are target times of 2 weeks from GP referral to hospital consultation, and then 4 weeks target time from that consultation to start of treatment or diagnostic procedures such as biopsy. Most NHS hospitals achieve those targets with about a 98% level. Now if you need a hip replacement, you might have to wait years..... but not for cancer.

If you do want to change your diet for a more healthy alternative, the worst thing you can do IMHO is to go 'all in', with a sudden change in your diet. Rather, make a small change by eating one type of 'healthy' food, but still also eating your favourite 'unhealthy' food in a smaller amount. Gradually move over several months from unhealthy to healthy diet.