Prostate Cancer Check Up In Chiang Mai

[sharktooth]

Anyone been for the test in CM and can recommend a Doc that knows what he is doing?

[cmbe]

I never been for prostate cancer check up, only come to give some information. You can check prostate specific antigen(PSA)+ digital rectal examination (DRE) in many hospitals in Chiang Mai, such as: Chiang Mai Ram, Lanna hospital, Rajavej hospital and at the Maharaj Chiang Mai hospital. Last week (13 July) there is a prostate cancer check up service at the 1st floor of Faculty of Medicine Chiang Mai university and also talk about operation by a robot (first one in the North, it has been operated 26 peoples which 20 of them have prostate cancer and the rest have other cancer).

[Feeld]

The prostate is an endocrin gland hence you need to see an endocrinologist, Dr Ampica at Sriphat Hospital (13th floor) is one of the very best in the country and a consultation with her should be no more than 300 baht plus the cost of tests.

[msg362]

In many hopsitals ,if you have a check up, you can have an ultrasonic scan of your abdomen included. This gives a picture of the size of your prostate and is very useful additional information to supplement the PSi test. I had it done in Rajavej which is cheaper than Ram and seems to be just as good.

[uptheos]

I had it done in Rajavej which is cheaper than Ram and seems to be just as good.

Good in what way?

If you didn't have it done in Ram previously (you might have but don't say) how can you compare?

Edited July 22, 2012 by uptheos

[Traxster]

Does anybody have any info on having tests for Prostate cancer done in Pattaya ?.

ie...Preferred Doctors/specialists to consult.

Preferred hospitals to attend....etc. etc.

Cheers and thanks.

[Somtamnication]

Good to know. Last year I had the PSA test but in 11 years of being here, never has any doctor felt that area as an examination. All these tests had test results and no doctor seen. Frustrating.

[msg362]

I had it done in Rajavej which is cheaper than Ram and seems to be just as good.

Good in what way?

If you didn't have it done in Ram previously (you might have but don't say) how can you compare?

I'll make it clear, I've been to both, I've had several US scans, but not one at RAM ( Lanna and Rajavej)). Looking at a US scan is simple. I was referring to the general treatment at Rajavej.

Edited July 23, 2012 by msg362

[cloudhopper]

The prostate is an endocrin gland hence you need to see an endocrinologist, Dr Ampica at Sriphat Hospital (13th floor) is one of the very best in the country and a consultation with her should be no more than 300 baht plus the cost of tests.

The prostate is an exocrine gland hence you need to <deleted> and anyone with a prostate problem should see a urologist.

BTW the PSA test has been recently been deemed no longer helpful as a screening test for prostate cancer in the US.

[kennalder]

The prostate is an endocrin gland hence you need to see an endocrinologist, Dr Ampica at Sriphat Hospital (13th floor) is one of the very best in the country and a consultation with her should be no more than 300 baht plus the cost of tests.

The prostate is an exocrine gland hence you need to <deleted> and anyone with a prostate problem should see a urologist.

BTW the PSA test has been recently been deemed no longer helpful as a screening test for prostate cancer in the US.

Best to read this before you quit getting the PSA test. http://www.forbes.com/sites/realspin/2012/07/05/is-president-obamas-prostate-gland-more-important-than-yours/

[Feeld]

The prostate is an endocrin gland hence you need to see an endocrinologist, Dr Ampica at Sriphat Hospital (13th floor) is one of the very best in the country and a consultation with her should be no more than 300 baht plus the cost of tests.

The prostate is an exocrine gland hence you need to <deleted> and anyone with a prostate problem should see a urologist.

I stand corrected and apologise and you need to learn better manners!

[sharktooth]

Do they do PSA tests in the hospitals here or DRE?

[uptheos]

Do they do PSA tests in the hospitals here or DRE?

Dr Bunnakit on the pinned list is quite good and he's only part time at Ram

UROLOGY (Urinary/Reproductive)

Dr. Bunnakit

Chiang Mai RAM Hospital

053 920300

If you prefer not to see him at Ram you can go to his clinic.

I'll give you his mobile and you can talk to him if you want........0818824085

[sharktooth]

Do they do PSA tests in the hospitals here or DRE?

Dr Bunnakit on the pinned list is quite good and he's only part time at Ram

UROLOGY (Urinary/Reproductive)

Dr. Bunnakit

Chiang Mai RAM Hospital

053 920300

If you prefer not to see him at Ram you can go to his clinic.

I'll give you his mobile and you can talk to him if you want........0818824085

Thanks for that, I'll give him a go.

I'm still young enough not to be in the danger range, but it is hereditary in my family and want to err on the cautious side. If it is caught early it is treatable.

[uptheos]

Do they do PSA tests in the hospitals here or DRE?

Dr Bunnakit on the pinned list is quite good and he's only part time at Ram

UROLOGY (Urinary/Reproductive)

Dr. Bunnakit

Chiang Mai RAM Hospital

053 920300

If you prefer not to see him at Ram you can go to his clinic.

I'll give you his mobile and you can talk to him if you want........0818824085

Thanks for that, I'll give him a go.

I'm still young enough not to be in the danger range, but it is hereditary in my family and want to err on the cautious side. If it is caught early it is treatable.

You can't be too careful - hope all turns out well.

[Lifer]

The prostate is an endocrin gland hence you need to see an endocrinologist, Dr Ampica at Sriphat Hospital (13th floor) is one of the very best in the country and a consultation with her should be no more than 300 baht plus the cost of tests.

Bad advice. Go see a Urologist at Sripat, Ram, or clinic of your choosing. The PSA test for men over 50 is ordered by the urologist who will also do a rectal digital exam. My Internal medicine Dr of 15 years does a thorogh exam as well and will send the PSA test off to the lab he uses for testing. You don't have to see endocrinologist.

[uptheos]

You don't have to see endocrinologist.

Indeed. In fact if it's just a PSA blood test and digital exam that's required, I'd look no further than Dr Tawachai at Loi Kroh Rd Clinic. One thing he does have is lots of experience and a big finger!

Seriously though, he can do a thorough digital exam.

[SamSipEt]

I found this useful http://thaiprostate.com/

[elektrified]

The prostate is an endocrin gland hence you need to see an endocrinologist, Dr Ampica at Sriphat Hospital (13th floor) is one of the very best in the country and a consultation with her should be no more than 300 baht plus the cost of tests.

Bad advice. Go see a Urologist at Sripat, Ram, or clinic of your choosing. The PSA test for men over 50 is ordered by the urologist who will also do a rectal digital exam. My Internal medicine Dr of 15 years does a thorogh exam as well and will send the PSA test off to the lab he uses for testing. You don't have to see endocrinologist.

That's probably a very good idea. If you go to the general medicine section on the 13th Floor at Sriphat, the doctors there will only take the blood test with no physical exam at all.

[Somtamnication]

Do they do PSA tests in the hospitals here or DRE?

Dr Bunnakit on the pinned list is quite good and he's only part time at Ram

UROLOGY (Urinary/Reproductive)

Dr. Bunnakit

Chiang Mai RAM Hospital

053 920300

If you prefer not to see him at Ram you can go to his clinic.

I'll give you his mobile and you can talk to him if you want........0818824085

Thanks for that, I'll give him a go.

I'm still young enough not to be in the danger range, but it is hereditary in my family and want to err on the cautious side. If it is caught early it is treatable.

We are talking about cancer here. YOU ARE NEVER TOO YOUNG to get it. Get tested!!!

[Gonzo the Face]

The prostate is an endocrin gland hence you need to see an endocrinologist, Dr Ampica at Sriphat Hospital (13th floor) is one of the very best in the country and a consultation with her should be no more than 300 baht plus the cost of tests.

The prostate is an exocrine gland hence you need to <deleted> and anyone with a prostate problem should see a urologist.

I stand corrected and apologise and you need to learn better manners!

Feeld , forgive me , but a bit of a smirky thought comes to me....... trust that you have had a rectal digital exam...... but the thought....... is it after this exam that you arrived at your screen name.??????

[NancyL]

The prostate is an endocrin gland hence you need to see an endocrinologist, Dr Ampica at Sriphat Hospital (13th floor) is one of the very best in the country and a consultation with her should be no more than 300 baht plus the cost of tests.

Bad advice. Go see a Urologist at Sripat, Ram, or clinic of your choosing. The PSA test for men over 50 is ordered by the urologist who will also do a rectal digital exam. My Internal medicine Dr of 15 years does a thorogh exam as well and will send the PSA test off to the lab he uses for testing. You don't have to see endocrinologist.

Hubby had the PSA test as part of one of those "package physicals" at CM Ram, where they do a whole bunch of tests the same days. His PSA reading was a little high, so they had him see a urologist at that same hospital. That guy wanted to schedule Hubby for a biopsy, without even doing a physical exam to see if the gland was enlarged. He also said it wasn't necessary to use anesthesia for a prostate biopsy.

A quick check with Dr. Google said it is a painful procedure and there are possible side effects, even from a biopsy. The least the M.D. should have done is put on a pair of gloves and check out the gland.

So, we went down to Bumrungrad where Hubby reported he had the most thorough physical exam of his prostate he's ever had. Based on that exam, Hubby did have a biopsy, but under the Michael Jackson happy juice which he said was the most pleasant part of the entire experience.

Oh -- the outcome was good. Biopsy was negative, but PSA numbers remain a little high. They call it "watchful waiting". If you spend a bit of time researching elevated PSAs and prostate cancer, you find it's a very slow growing cancer and often the side effects of the surgery are worse than simply living with the cancer. Much depends upon your age and anticipated life expectancy.

Also a negative biopsy doesn't mean someone is cancer-free. The current state of the technology is analogous to us women having a blood test that shows a "marker" that could indicate breast cancer. Then, to check it out, they go and take several dozen random samples of the breast tissue with no clue about exactly where the cancer might be located. In that scenario, there is a high possibility that the cancer could be missed with the random samples.

Edited July 24, 2012 by NancyL

[Feeld]

The prostate is an endocrin gland hence you need to see an endocrinologist, Dr Ampica at Sriphat Hospital (13th floor) is one of the very best in the country and a consultation with her should be no more than 300 baht plus the cost of tests.

The prostate is an exocrine gland hence you need to <deleted> and anyone with a prostate problem should see a urologist.

I stand corrected and apologise and you need to learn better manners!

Feeld , forgive me , but a bit of a smirky thought comes to me....... trust that you have had a rectal digital exam...... but the thought....... is it after this exam that you arrived at your screen name.??????

Funny but no, the screen name used was determined at birth.

[KhunOr]

The New England Journal of Medicine has just published a 15-year study of 731 men with early-stage prostate cancer who had agreed to be randomly assigned to surgery or a program of watchful waiting. During the study, the largest of its kind, 52 men, or about 7 percent of the study subjects, died of prostate cancer.

Now read the following carefully: There was no statistical difference in the prostate cancer mortality rate or the overall death rate between the groups. Most men survived the disease whether they had surgery or did nothing. And some men who had surgery died, as did some men who did nothing.

If you go to a urologist they are bound to tell you to have a biopsy if there is any chance that you might have cancer. In CM I know of one well known urologist who will scare the living daylights out of a patient who has an elevated PSA in order to get them to have a biopsy. NancyL pointed out the problem with that (it took a female to point it out). I'll add this: First that's what they are trained for (and they will not have time or inclination to discuss with you diet and lifestyle changes that are likely to help or reverse whatever condition you have, quite likely BPH). Second that's how they make money. Third that way they are covered in the case of lawsuits claiming negligence. Think about it and look up info on that study above. There's an article about it in today's New York Post. Relax. Take your time to read up about prostate conditions before making a rash decision. And good luck.

Edited July 24, 2012 by KhunOr

[NancyL]

The New England Journal of Medicine has just published a 15-year study of 731 men with early-stage prostate cancer who had agreed to be randomly assigned to surgery or a program of watchful waiting. During the study, the largest of its kind, 52 men, or about 7 percent of the study subjects, died of prostate cancer.

Now read the following carefully: There was no statistical difference in the prostate cancer mortality rate or the overall death rate between the groups. Most men survived the disease whether they had surgery or did nothing. And some men who had surgery died, as did some men who did nothing.

If you go to a urologist they are bound to tell you to have a biopsy if there is any chance that you might have cancer. In CM I know of one well known urologist who will scare the living daylights out of a patient who has an elevated PSA in order to get them to have a biopsy. NancyL pointed out the problem with that (it took a female to point it out). I'll add this: First that's what they are trained for (and they will not have time or inclination to discuss with you diet and lifestyle changes that are likely to help or reverse whatever condition you have, quite likely BPH). Second that's how they make money. Third that way they are covered in the case of lawsuits claiming negligence. Think about it and look up info on that study above. There's an article about it in today's New York Post. Relax. Take your time to read up about prostate conditions before making a rash decision. And good luck.

Thank you for the additional insight. This isn't just a male problem -- we women have to live with the consequences. My grandfather died from a blood clot to the brain after prostate surgery -- at age 85. Why would anyone subject an 85 year old man to that?

His son, my father, had the same surgery at age 82 and it left him incontinient. Yeah, I know men always worry about the sexual side effect, but at age 82 the ability to pee at will is much more important. My step-mother was a saint in doing laundry and being patient, but eventually she consented to a catherter being placed in my Dad. We'd all read the literature about what happens at that point. It's not urinary tract infections that "do in" the people with catherters, but rather the lack of activity, because it turns out that getting up out of the chair in front of the T.V. and walking to the toilet is a major form of exercise for the 80+crowd.

Edited July 24, 2012 by NancyL

[PoodMaiDai]

The prostate is an endocrin gland hence you need to see an endocrinologist, Dr Ampica at Sriphat Hospital (13th floor) is one of the very best in the country and a consultation with her should be no more than 300 baht plus the cost of tests.

Bad advice. Go see a Urologist at Sripat, Ram, or clinic of your choosing. The PSA test for men over 50 is ordered by the urologist who will also do a rectal digital exam. My Internal medicine Dr of 15 years does a thorogh exam as well and will send the PSA test off to the lab he uses for testing. You don't have to see endocrinologist.

Hubby had the PSA test as part of one of those "package physicals" at CM Ram, where they do a whole bunch of tests the same days. His PSA reading was a little high, so they had him see a urologist at that same hospital. That guy wanted to schedule Hubby for a biopsy, without even doing a physical exam to see if the gland was enlarged. He also said it wasn't necessary to use anesthesia for a prostate biopsy.

A quick check with Dr. Google said it is a painful procedure and there are possible side effects, even from a biopsy. The least the M.D. should have done is put on a pair of gloves and check out the gland.

So, we went down to Bumrungrad where Hubby reported he had the most thorough physical exam of his prostate he's ever had. Based on that exam, Hubby did have a biopsy, but under the Michael Jackson happy juice which he said was the most pleasant part of the entire experience.

Oh -- the outcome was good. Biopsy was negative, but PSA numbers remain a little high. They call it "watchful waiting". If you spend a bit of time researching elevated PSAs and prostate cancer, you find it's a very slow growing cancer and often the side effects of the surgery are worse than simply living with the cancer. Much depends upon your age and anticipated life expectancy.

Also a negative biopsy doesn't mean someone is cancer-free. The current state of the technology is analogous to us women having a blood test that shows a "marker" that could indicate breast cancer. Then, to check it out, they go and take several dozen random samples of the breast tissue with no clue about exactly where the cancer might be located. In that scenario, there is a high possibility that the cancer could be missed with the random samples.

Please PM me the docs name at RAM, I want to avoid him like the plague. I've found a lot of Thai doctors I've come across to be total nincompoops. Want to be sure to add this one to the list.

[Lifer]

The prostate is an endocrin gland hence you need to see an endocrinologist, Dr Ampica at Sriphat Hospital (13th floor) is one of the very best in the country and a consultation with her should be no more than 300 baht plus the cost of tests.

Bad advice. Go see a Urologist at Sripat, Ram, or clinic of your choosing. The PSA test for men over 50 is ordered by the urologist who will also do a rectal digital exam. My Internal medicine Dr of 15 years does a thorogh exam as well and will send the PSA test off to the lab he uses for testing. You don't have to see endocrinologist.

That's probably a very good idea. If you go to the general medicine section on the 13th Floor at Sriphat, the doctors there will only take the blood test with no physical exam at all.

Sripat Urologist will do complete finger examination (and was very thorough), and so will the Internal medicine doctor I have used for last 12 years. Both are trained to detect anything unusual or lumps. If PSA is over 4.0 they often want to get a ultrasound. The normal PSA level is often higher with age, so if over a 4.0, it isn't necessarily something to worry about depending on your age. What is more of a problem with age is benign prostatic hyperplasia ... referred to benign prostatic hypertrophy.

Edited July 25, 2012 by Lifer