A friend of mine recently was diagnosed with cancer in Pattaya at Banglamung Hospital.  He is from a nearby province and does not have free health privileges in Pattaya. 

 

I recommended that he go to see the Cancer specialists at Chonburi Cancer Hospital.  http://www.ccc.in.th/en/

 

Like nearly everyone else in Pattaya, he is doing poorly economically right now.  He worked in construction and at bars doing manual labor.  He is only 25 so his diagnosis comes as a shock and he is pretty scared.   He has a young child also.

 

I am not currently in Thailand so cannot really oversee his treatment.  I know he needs to get back to to his home province to get his health card sent to Banglamung or Chonburi Cancer Hospital.

 

And that is the advice I gave him.  I asked him to have the doctor write out what kind of cancer and what stage.  It seems to be stage 3 and from the photos and  his description of what the doctors said.  Right now he is going to Banglamung Hospital daily.  

 

I am pretty shocked by this and am planning returning to Thailand as soon as quarantine ends to help him sort this.

What is his nationality? Can he return to his country to get treatment? If his cancer treatment requires a lengthy course it will be either very expensive here or not suitable and at a basic level. 

Thai national.  He must get treatment in Thailand.  No other choices.

Depend on the kind of the cancer and how far it spread, usually stage 3 means bad news, but again, some cancers are operable and prospect of continue living is good, but no money and Thailand is NOT a good place to be terminally sic if you're poor. very sorry for your friend and i wish him well...

There are 2 approaches for him to get free treatment in Pattaya area.

 

1. Change his house registration (tabian ban) to anywhere in the province - for this he needs someone listed as house master in a registration book in the province who is willing to add his name. Renters can do this but getting landlord's cooperation is sometimes difficult (landlord would have to go with him in person to the ampur office).  Or if he is friendly with anyone else in the area  who is a homeowner they could add him to their regstration. Once listed in a tabian ban he is eligible for free care at the hospital which serves that location as well as any hospital to which they refer him (which in Chonburi would surely be the Chonburi Cancer hospital). Note however that once he changes his house registration he is no longer eligible for free care in his home province,  so need to consider how sure he is of staying in Pattaya area etc. And whether that would hold true if he became seriously ill, unable to work etc.

 

(2) Other approach is to get a letter from Chonburi Cancer hospital stating his diagnosis and that they are able to treat him if his  "home hospital" issues a letter of referral. Ideally they should indicate expected duration of treatment so that the referral letter shows enough time (common issue with referral lettets is having too short an expiration). He then takes this to the hospital where he is registered for free care and asks them for a referral.  They would have to refer him somewhere anyhow and might agree to refer him to Chonburi  once referred care is free.

 

Before pursing either of these options he should call the NHSO (call center 1330) as there was supposed to be a change whereby cancer patients could be treated at any government hospital without needing a letter of referrral. I am not sure of the status of implementation of this change but NHSO can tell him.

Thanks Sheryl.  I will tell him that.