cervical cancer

[silentnine]

morning all.

my Thai wife is here in chiang mai visiting family for 3 months and I've just flown over also for a couple of weeks. 

having not seen each other for a while we did what couple do and to be blunt it was a bloodbath.   prompted a visit to sriphat medical center as we were in a hotel in chiang mai Town for a couple of nights.  she's from wang phrao which is about 80km further up in the middle of nowhere.

 

result showed a 5cm cervical tumour. awaiting biopsy report over the next couple of days. 

now... I of course (and she also) wants this sorted and hoping very much its not malignant.

is sriphat any good ? are there better alternatives ?  all my googling says most likely looking at a hysterectomy but I'm a man so this is one thing I know nothing about.

we could also instead fly back to the UK however very concerned about waiting times. 

so the question is.  if this is what's needed Where's the best place to go and terrible to say but I'm not made of money so price if a great deal is a concern, 

 

[silentnine]

wishing I hadn't started reading about this now.  from what I can see it's a bit more than a standard hysterectomy that could be needed as the tumour is further down. ???? making it at least stage 2.

4am.  can't sleep. 

I've read more about this and think I'm getting  more worried than she is !!!

[Onerak]

In cervical cancer,, they may have to remove the entire reproductive organs in extreme cases. Thai state level government hospitals will be her best bet, I would guess. If possible, take her to UK and get it done properly. Hope she recover soon. Good luck

[silentnine]

5am unable to get to sleep myself now. lol.  she's fast asleep.  lol.

I cannot stop worrying about it.

in true English style I'm playing out every outcome in my head and the more I think the more I'm dreading this...

even started wondering what happens in Thailand if a foreign husband does not agree with her Thai parents about what the best thing to do is. 

in the UK husband is next of kin. in Thailand is that the case? 

 

 

Edited March 21, 2022 by silentnine

[internationalism]

cancer care can be done in any chosen hospital, doesnt have to be local one.

In bangkok she would have better care.

With medical records from thailand she would have head start on NHS priority list.

Call your GP surgery, even receptionist would be competent to give you advice how to start

[NancyL]

You may want to ask for this thread to be moved over to the Health section of this forum where the moderator Sheryl, a very experienced nurse in Thailand can give you advice.  

[Sheryl]

Sorry, just now saw this thread.

 

Your wife can get this treated free of charge through the government health system, no need to pay out of pocket. Not at Sripat as that is a private service but at Maharaj Nakorn Hospital which has the same doctors. It used to be necessary to get a referral from the government hospital one is registered at (based on residence) but supposedly this is no longer necessary in patients with cancer.Any questions on that pointy should be directed to the NHSO  https://eng.nhso.go.th/view/1/Contact_NHSO/EN-US

 

Treatment depends on the stage of the cancer.  From the tumor size, she may indeed be looking at a combination of surgery, chemo and possibly radiation.

 

Survival rate is excellent (>90%) if the cancer has not yet spread beyong the cervix and uterus. They may nto be able to know this until after surgery (they will remove and biopsy pelvic lymph nodes).

 

As to your questions about decision making, surely your wife is  competent to make her own decisions?

[Sheryl]

P.S. This is exactly why regular screenings are important (pap smear/thin prep). Cervical cancers are slow growing and this could have been caught many years ago while still microscopic at which point treatment is simple and does nto even require hysterectomy. Not saying that to make you feel bad, but as a reminder to other TV members.

[silentnine]

23 hours ago, Sheryl said:

Sorry, just now saw this thread.

 

Your wife can get this treated free of charge through the government health system, no need to pay out of pocket. Not at Sripat as that is a private service but at Maharaj Nakorn Hospital which has the same doctors. It used to be necessary to get a referral from the government hospital one is registered at (based on residence) but supposedly this is no longer necessary in patients with cancer.Any questions on that pointy should be directed to the NHSO  https://eng.nhso.go.th/view/1/Contact_NHSO/EN-US

 

Treatment depends on the stage of the cancer.  From the tumor size, she may indeed be looking at a combination of surgery, chemo and possibly radiation.

 

Survival rate is excellent (>90%) if the cancer has not yet spread beyong the cervix and uterus. They may nto be able to know this until after surgery (they will remove and biopsy pelvic lymph nodes).

 

As to your questions about decision making, surely your wife is  competent to make her own decisions?

thanks for the reply sheryl.

we had biopsy results yesterday. malignant sadly.

they did a CT scan which we are going back today for the results for.

I have little knowledge of the thai government health system.  

would she have a better chance if we rush back to the UK to get treatment. either NHS or we also have some UK private insurance coverage upto £50,000.  its unlikely we can afford under the thai private system as yesterday's CT alone was 20k baht so suspect we're looking at 1mill + to go private here. the Dr said waiting times are sadly long at the moment here in Thailand due to pressure on the system from covid

[Sheryl]

2 hours ago, silentnine said:

thanks for the reply sheryl.

we had biopsy results yesterday. malignant sadly.

they did a CT scan which we are going back today for the results for.

I have little knowledge of the thai government health system.  

would she have a better chance if we rush back to the UK to get treatment. either NHS or we also have some UK private insurance coverage upto £50,000.  its unlikely we can afford under the thai private system as yesterday's CT alone was 20k baht so suspect we're looking at 1mill + to go private here. the Dr said waiting times are sadly long at the moment here in Thailand due to pressure on the system from covid

I would definitely advise going back to UK for care under NHS. Maybe use the private UK cover for things like expedited scans etc.