Why Medical Tourism Companies are Key to Your Breast Cancer Treatment Journey in India
India is home to some of the Breast Cancer treatment hospitals globally and the number of expert oncologists is also significantly high compared to other countries with reliable healthcare systems. This is the reason thousands of patients from different parts of the world travel to India for healthcare services. However, often patients and their companions are not in the right state of mind to arrange the logistics of such a journey. So, most of the international patients traveling to India prefer choosing the services of a medical tourism company (MTC).
This article discusses how an MTC can make life easier for people getting admitted to some of the best breast cancer hospitals in India.
Why is breast cancer grabbing global attention?
Breast cancer is the most common type of cancer that women suffer from across countries. In 2022, over 23 lakh (2.3 million) were diagnosed with the disease and nearly 6.7 lakh deaths occurred worldwide. Incidents of breast cancer are found to be comparatively high in developed, high-income societies. However, that does not mean women in middle and low-income countries are free from the risk. Out of 185 countries (covered under a WHO survey), 157 registered cases of breast cancer. So it’s natural that breast cancer is a global health concern.
This is the reason some of the best breast cancer hospitals in India regularly run awareness programs to improve public know-how on the disease. They follow the WHO’s Global Breast Cancer Initiative Framework and emphasize early detection and treatment.
Who is at risk of breast cancer?
Incidents of breast cancer may not be exclusive to women. However, worldwide, cases of men suffering from breast cancer are less than 1% among the total reported cases. Certain factors may increase the risk of the diseases among women. They are:
- Early start in menstruation
- Late menopause
- Obesity
- Excessive alcohol consumption
- Substance abuse
- Tobacco consumption
- Family history of the disease
- Unprotected exposure to radiation
One of the effective ways of early detection is by performing a Breast Self-exam (BSE) for symptoms. The best breast cancer treatment doctors In India also motivate women belonging to high-risk categories to perform BSE. Some of the commonly recognizable breast cancer symptoms are:
- lump in the breast (with or without pain)
- changes in a breast’s appearance (like, size and shape)
- Unusual change in breast’s skin
- change in appearance of the nipple and surrounding skin
- Secretion of abnormal fluid from nipples
What are the most effective breast cancer treatments?
Breast cancer treatments may vary with disease subtypes. If detected in stage 1 or stage 2, breast cancers can be successfully treated and the survival rate is very high. With delays in correct diagnosis, it can spread to other parts of the body and can become fatal even after successful surgical removal of cancerous breast tissues.
Oncologists at the best breast cancer hospitals in India often prefer combining multiple treatment procedures for the effective removal of cancer cells and avoiding recurrence. A commonly performed combination treatment plan is:
- Lumpectomy or mastectomy to remove cancerous breast tissues.
- Using radiation therapy on neighborhood tissues after surgery.
- Chemotherapy to destroy remaining cancer cells, if any.
Other advanced treatments performed regularly at some of the best breast cancer hospitals in India are:
- Hormonal therapy
- Targeted therapies
- Immunotherapy
- Multi-disciplinary cancer treatments
How do medical tourism companies simplify breast cancer treatments in India?
The best breast cancer hospitals in India regularly serve thousands of patients from different parts of the world with different cancerous diseases. These hospitals are highly accommodative to patients’ requirements and often directly respond to patients’ queries.
However, India is home to not one but many top cancer care facilities. So, it can be a humongous task for patients and their families to establish contact and effectively communicate their case history, let alone arrange the logistics of travel and treatment. This is why many international patients prefer to avail the services of MTCs.
These companies can simplify the medical travel-related processes, starting from pre-travel consultation and travel planning, to hospital admission and post-treatment procedures for breast cancer patients.
Some of the crucial services a reputable MTC provides are:
- Arranging pre-travel or pre-treatment consultation with top doctors.
- A dedicated person to guide, advise, and coordinate treatment, travel, and stay.
- Providing transparent estimations regarding costs.
- Negotiation with hospitals on behalf of patients.
- Selecting the most suitable breast cancer treatment hospital for the patient.
- VISA application assistance and travel logistics support.
- Language support throughout the process.
- Arranging post-treatment care within and outside hospitals.
- Accommodation assistance for persons accompanying patients.
Bottomline
The best breast cancer hospitals in India are some of the top destinations worldwide for reliable and advanced cancer care. This is because, if planned properly, the costs of treatment in top Indian hospitals can be highly affordable as per global standards. Reputable MTCs make this planning and arrangement easier for patients and their families and are facilitators in the entire process of undergoing treatment.