Cancer care in Mexico (Oaxaca especially)

Posted by fiskadoro @fiskadoro, Jul 7 4:33pm

Hello,

I am about 1 month post surgery and working my way back to "normal" or, more likely, my new normal. My work takes me to Oaxaca, and I have been thinking about making it my home. Anyone have any experience with cancer care there? I had a fairly aggressive cancer, Gleason score of 3 + 4 and though it was contained within my prostate, I have to be sober and realistic about my life going forward.

I am fortunate that if need be I can get to Guadalajara, Mexico City, or other parts of Mexico for my care if need be. Any recommendations or insights? I am 56 and otherwise in good health. I have no preference in terms of the doctor's language ability.

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VancouverIslandHiker | @vancouverislandhiker | Jul 8 9:24am

Fisk - not familiar with Mexican Health care per se , but so many Canadian go down there to get their teeth fixed and such . The health care in Oaxaca must be fine , as most of Mexico is good . Probably not as good as the USA or Canada but thats just a guess . Like in anything , there would be "good, better, best " levels of care in that province . I go back to the Philippines quite a bit and ground out with friends there . Same thing , some clinics I would not send my dog to , other are state of the art with European trained doctors . you 1 month out of surgery so lots to rehab now ! Operation go as expected ? No surprises ? Enjoy everyday Fisk ! Gos Bless ! James

thmssllvn | @thmssllvn | Jul 8 11:21am

Absent additional descriptors [G7] 3/4 is not in the HIGHER Metastatic risk Gleason G8-9-10

topf | @topf | Jul 8 1:53pm

Oaxaca probably does not have very good providers. Your best bet would be Médica Sur or Hospital Angeles in CDMX, or maybe some place in Monterrey.

All you need now is sn urologist twice a year who can order a two-digit PSA test. The problems arise if you hapoen to have a recurrence. Do you still have a health insurance in the US? If yes, you would want to come here for radiation. If no, you may want to look cast the web wider and not only look in Mexico for a radiologist but also consider, e.g. Europe.

The real problem starts if you have a recurrence after having had salvage. If you don’t have health insurance you would either not get state-of-the-art care or treatment would be very expensive. Mexico has very affordable health care services, but latest generation drugs are either not available or almost as costly as in the US.

fiskadoro | @fiskadoro | Jul 8 4:09pm

In reply to @topf "Oaxaca probably does not have very good providers. Your best bet would be Médica Sur or..." + (show)

Thanks, I had forgotten about Monterrey. I still have health insurance here in the US. I will keep in mind about latest generation drugs and state of the art care, and start the search for someone to administer the PSA for me there.

fiskadoro | @fiskadoro | Jul 8 4:11pm

In reply to @thmssllvn "Absent additional descriptors [G7] 3/4 is not in the HIGHER Metastatic risk Gleason G8-9-10" + (show)

I recall the surgeon telling me that there was an area in my prostate that was grade 5, if I understood him correctly.

topf | @topf | Jul 8 4:35pm

Was the 3+4 Gleason from your pathology or only from the biopsy? If the latter, look at your pathology report if it changed. It should also say if a minor pattern 5 was detected. In my understanding it is not such a big deal, what matters most for recurrence risk are negative margins, no cribriform, no IDC. If you have not done a decipher test yet, get one done on the specimen to have an idea of your metastatic risk.

ddl | @ddl | Jul 9 9:58am

You might consider Dr Dagoberto Molina Polo at the ABC hospital in CDMX. He has an excellent reputation.

fiskadoro | @fiskadoro | Jul 16 6:43am

In reply to @ddl "You might consider Dr Dagoberto Molina Polo at the ABC hospital in CDMX. He has an..." + (show)

Hi,

Thanks for this comment, I will look into Dr. Polo.

fiskadoro | @fiskadoro | Jul 16 6:50am

In reply to @topf "Was the 3+4 Gleason from your pathology or only from the biopsy? If the latter, look..." + (show)

It was from the biopsy. After reading your comment, I went back to check the pathology and the exact wording is: "Adenocarcinoma of the prostate, Gleason Score 4+3=7 (grade group 3), with minor tertiary pattern 5" and "Margin Status: All margins negative for invasive carcinoma".

Thank you for providing that insight for me, I feel better informed now.

fiskadoro | @fiskadoro | Jul 16 7:00am

In reply to @vancouverislandhiker "Fisk - not familiar with Mexican Health care per se , but so many Canadian go..." + (show)

Everything went as expected and I am now 5.5 weeks into my recovery. Doing kegels, seeing a physical therapist (I started a month before surgery) and looking forward to getting back in the gym. Not looking forward to going back to work wearing pads or incontinence briefs, but oh well.

If I were living in one of the megapolises I would not be thinking about this, but the difference between Oaxaca and a place like Guadalajara is pretty stark in terms of technological development, so my diagnosis really brought that into relief.