Help All Cancer Patients, Experts Urge Thai Government

[webfact]

Help all cancer patients, experts urge government

Pongphon Sarnsamak

The Nation

They want those under NHSO, SSO, CSMB to receive equal treatment

BANGKOK: -- Health experts want over 200,000 patients suffering from all types of cancer to be covered by the government's three healthcare funds with the same medical benefits.

"The government should make the three national healthcare funds - the National Health Security Office (NHSO), Social Security Office (SSO) and Comptroller General Depart-ment's Civil Servant Medical Benefit (CSMB) - provide the same treatment for cancer patients in a bid to reduce inequality among the funds and help patients access better treatment," Dr Pongsathorn Pokpermdee, an independent health economist, said.

According to the Public Health Ministry, cancer has been recorded as the leading cause of death among Thais since 2000. The ministry found that the number of cancer deaths increased drastically from 52,062 cases in 2006 to 58,076 cases in 2010. Liver cancer and cholangiocarcinoma (bile duct cancer) have the highest mortality rate, followed by cancer of the larynx and lung cancer.

To provide medical treatment for patients suffering from cancer under the existing three national healthcare schemes, Pongsathorn said the NHSO would only provide anti-cancer drugs registered under the national drug list. It would consider case by case those patients who need life-saving cancer drugs that are outside the national drug list. However, the NHSO would cover chemotherapy.

Meanwhile, medical benefits un-der the SSO cover only seven types of cancer: breast cancer, cervical cancer, ovarian cancer, lung cancer, esopha-geal cancer, nasopharyngeal cancer and colon cancer. But the treatment and medicine depend on the consideration of each healthcare service unit or hospital registered with the SSO.

Patients registered with the CSMB can able to get expensive drugs and medication as the fund gets full reimbursement for treatment expenses from the government.

For example, those patients suffering from lymphoma cancer registered with the NHSO and SSO are not be able to get an expensive life-saving cancer drug such as rituximab, which costs about Bt80,000 per injection. Patients with lymphoma cancer need about six injections of the medication, which costs Bt480,000.

Meanwhile, patients with lymphoma cancer registered with the CSMB can get rituximab for treatment. To date, there are about 2,145 patients suffering from lymphoma cancer. Of this number, about 1,560 of them are registered with the NHSO and only 737 of them can get rituximab for treatment.

The NHSO earlier negotiated with the drugmaker to reduce the price of rituximab from Bt48,000 to Bt23,000, instead of imposing compulsory licensing. But the negotiation was cancelled by the government under the Democrat Party.

In a bid to help cancer patients access treatment, Pongsathorn said the government should equalise the three national healthcare funds and make them provide the same treatment. The government should also allow cancer patients to get expensive life-saving drugs for medication.

Pongsathorn will organise a press conference today to inform the public about inequalities in the system.

Public Health Minister Witthaya Buranasiri said the government was now studying the possibility of merging the medical benefits for cancer treatment under the three national healthcare schemes. However, he said the government would first merge healthcare benefits for HIV/Aids and chronic kidney disease. The government will hold a meeting to discuss this issue with the three national health scheme providers on Thursday.

NHSO secretary-general Dr Winai Sawasdhivorn said he proposed the idea to merge healthcare benefits for cancer treatment after he was appointed as secretary-general for a second term, but he did not have details yet of the plan and needed to do more study on the subject.

Dr Suradej Waleeittikul, deputy secretary-general of the SSO, said his agency already covers treatment for seven types of cancer. Extending healthcare coverage for all cancers was under consideration, Suradej said.

-- The Nation 2012-06-18

[jaltsc]

How about helping to prevent certain cancers? Every time someone lights up a cigarette in public, pull it out of his or her mouth and stomp on it. Then. of course, there are the cancers caused by toxins in the environment. How about helping to eliminate carcinogens used for agriculture or poured into the waterways, making motor vehicles cleaner, etc.

Oh, I forgot. If we do nothing, the everyone profits. The tobacco companies, chemical companies, the auto companies, petrol companies and finally the pharmaceutical companies and health care providers.The only ones getting the short end in this process are the common people.

[AartLiberty]

If Thailand is planning to go on with using chemo-therapy as cancer-treatment, I can tell you it won't benefit the patient, only the pharmaceutical maffia. Give the patient a free choice between the poisoning chemo-therapy or the Gerson therapie, that would be a good start. Read also the information at this link: http://www.ener-chi.com/books/cancer-is-not-a-disease/

I hope Thailand will start to go away from the dangerous chemo - and radiation treatment, it will only make patients and their relatives to suffer more.

[rkidlad]

If Thailand is planning to go on with using chemo-therapy as cancer-treatment, I can tell you it won't benefit the patient, only the pharmaceutical maffia. Give the patient a free choice between the poisoning chemo-therapy or the Gerson therapie, that would be a good start. Read also the information at this link: http://www.ener-chi....-not-a-disease/

I hope Thailand will start to go away from the dangerous chemo - and radiation treatment, it will only make patients and their relatives to suffer more.

How can you say that? I had chemo therapy as a child and it saved my life. Yes, it was horrible, but it saved my life.

[Rancid]

Many years ago Chemo Doctors were polled as to who of them would use chemo if diagnosed with cancer, a very small percentage said they would.

Saw my dad's life marginally extended by chemo and other "new" expensive treatments, he died on morphine in a daze to stop the pain after months as a virtual invalid, no way I am going down road. We all want to live but...

Cancer treatment (and others) is a major expense for governments and naturally a major profit to Big Pharma, yes there are some successes, but mostly I believe marginal life extension of poor quality for massive cost.

[geriatrickid]

If Thailand is planning to go on with using chemo-therapy as cancer-treatment, I can tell you it won't benefit the patient, only the pharmaceutical maffia. Give the patient a free choice between the poisoning chemo-therapy or the Gerson therapie, that would be a good start. Read also the information at this link: http://www.ener-chi....-not-a-disease/

I hope Thailand will start to go away from the dangerous chemo - and radiation treatment, it will only make patients and their relatives to suffer more.

There is no pharmaceutical "maffia" (sic).

As soon as you posted the Gerson Therapy and its coffee enema, you demonstrated profound ignorance. Chemotherapy and the use of radioactive isotopes have been proven to work. Patients have a choice. They can refuse the treatments, or they can try an option that has saved millions of lives. The Gerson method along with all the other nutter strategies have absolutely no record of success. Chemotherapy and radiation therapy do have established success records. Where the established therapies fail is when the cancer is too advanced or widespread, but they can give patients extra time, which is what most patients want.

[elshaheen]

From what I’ve read so far, Thailand is only focusing on using Chemo therapy to treat cancer patients for cancers such as Lymphoma. They feel this is the only option.

As a former cancer survivor who has had Lymphoma both Hodgkin’s and non-Hodgkin’s for over 20 years with it reoccurring every five years. Now, there are some new treatments that have come out in the last few months and have been getting better and better as time goes on. These new treatments target the cancer cells themselves and kill them not killing the whole body like Chemo does.

I do hope Thailand medical professionals view newer treatments for cancers such as Breast cancers, lymphoma, Prostrate and countless others.

[ableguy]

How about helping to prevent certain cancers? Every time someone lights up a cigarette in public, pull it out of his or her mouth and stomp on it. Then. of course, there are the cancers caused by toxins in the environment. How about helping to eliminate carcinogens used for agriculture or poured into the waterways, making motor vehicles cleaner, etc.

Oh, I forgot. If we do nothing, the everyone profits. The tobacco companies, chemical companies, the auto companies, petrol companies and finally the pharmaceutical companies and health care providers.The only ones getting the short end in this process are the common people.

You are right but thisw is Thailand my freind only money counts, murder, is not even on the list,

[elshaheen]

How about helping to prevent certain cancers? Every time someone lights up a cigarette in public, pull it out of his or her mouth and stomp on it. Then. of course, there are the cancers caused by toxins in the environment. How about helping to eliminate carcinogens used for agriculture or poured into the waterways, making motor vehicles cleaner, etc.

Oh, I forgot. If we do nothing, the everyone profits. The tobacco companies, chemical companies, the auto companies, petrol companies and finally the pharmaceutical companies and health care providers.The only ones getting the short end in this process are the common people.

You are right but thisw is Thailand my freind only money counts, murder, is not even on the list,

Vitually everything in Thailand our south East Asia is a cancer risk. From the food we eat esp the seafood, to the products we drink, the air we breath, and etc.

Each year, the Government sprays schools with a form of DDT to help reduce insects.

So, when living in Thailand everyone including you is a cancer risk.