Advanced Procedures Lure Medical Tourists Abroad

“Cancer” is perhaps the most frightening word one can hear in the confines of a doctor’s office. After the initial shock lessens, sticker shock sets in. Care, including doctor’s visits, treatments, hospital stays, surgeries, and prescription drugs, can add up to hundreds of thousands of dollars; even those with health insurance often face astronomical bills. Even if they do have the funds, however, that does not necessarily mean they will get the treatment options they need. Dave Kyle, for instance, was diagnosed to advanced esophageal cancer and given a grim prognosis. Options within the US were limited, so Mr. Kyle went to Baja California, Mexico to receive potentially life-saving care that is unavailable stateside.

 

Over 14,700 people die of esophageal cancer each year in the United States. Patients like Dave Kyle experience heartburn, food regurgitation, difficult swallowing, chest pain, and weight loss, among other symptoms. The standard course of treatment if the cancer has not metastasized is typically chemotherapy, radiation, and surgery. Mr. Kyle’s cancer had spread; his doctor suggested an open esophagectomy. During this major surgery, cancerous tissue is removed, and tissue is taken from the stomach or large intestines to rebuild the esophagus. The risks, for Kyle, outweighed the benefits, but there was nothing else to do besides receive palliative care.
Nothing else in the US, perhaps. In Mexico, doctors use treatments such as SonoPhoto Dynamic Therapy. This treatment used light and sound to kill cancer cells. This is used in the US, but it is only used in conjunction with chemotherapy as the sensitizer. That is, it uses chemotherapy as a way to make the cells more receptive to treatment. SonoPhoto uses chlorophyll, which eliminates the side effects associated with chemotherapy.

 

Not only did Mexico offer this procedure, it was home to the world’s leading expert in this area, Dr. Antonio Jimenez. He says, “This treatment targets only cancer cells. At our clinic, we usually see a size reduction of 25-30% in tumors during the first 2 weeks of treatment.” It is, according to Dr. Jimenez, very effective in esophageal cancer, as well as breast, ovarian, bladder, prostate, and lung cancers.

 

Many would-be medical tourists are hesitant to pursue care in other countries because they fear “experimental” procedures are not safe. In fact, SonoPhoto is not experimental or alternative. It is widely used in the UK, China, and Mexico, and it is allowed, under certain circumstances, in the European Union. It is not considered “conventional” largely because it is not practiced in the United States. It is safe, proven, and effective.

 

The benefits for people like Kyle go beyond world class medical care; Dr. Jimenez focused on other aspects of healing, including nutrition, exercise, and mental health. More and more people, like Dave Kyle, are realizing that they are not bound by borders in their search for high quality medical care.