← Return to 50 and Full of Life. Need advice. TULSA or HIFU or what?

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I had TULSA last Friday, a hemi-ablation. I thought TULSA was good/maybe better than HIFU because you are in the bore of an MRI for the procedure. They target the cancer from the inside out. I’ve had no meds, feel great and get catheter out after 6 days. We’ll see how the ED and incontinence works out but I’m optimistic about both based on doctor comments. My understanding is that Profound Medical (the TULSA manufacturer) has a rep or two attend the procedures too. That gave me added confidence. All the best to you.

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Replies to "I had TULSA last Friday, a hemi-ablation. I thought TULSA was good/maybe better than HIFU because..."

@llhuscg Speaking about HIFU & TULSA, I received this email yesterday:

“Anthem Blue Cross, the largest for-profit member of the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association (serving more than 40 million members), recently reviewed its medical policy on High Intensity Focused Ultrasound (HIFU) for localized prostate cancer. Anthem has determined that HIFU treatment is “not medically necessary,” despite support from the urologic oncology community. Both Medicare and other major commercial plans such as United Healthcare are already covering the HIFU procedure.
The non-coverage policy from Anthem represents a major step back that limits patient access to a non-invasive treatment option and undermines individualized care based on the patient-physician shared decision-making principle.

While many of your members may not have had direct experience with HIFU, this effort represents a meaningful opportunity to advocate for broader coverage and access, making this treatment option available to more men across the United States.“

So, just to be sure that I wasn’t being scammed, I checked on Anthem’s web site about this. This from Anthem’s website, effective last week: https://www.anthem.com/medpolicies/abc/active/gl_pw_d091799.html