Breast Cancer Treatment Advice

Hey man, sorry to hear that.

As you know that those specialist hospitals are out of reach, but if you can somehow get a recommendation from doctor they might accept her.

Being diagnosed at this stage would mean that you'll have to be with your wife most of the times during chemo/radiation and all, so if you can get a leave from your work on personal grounds then I suggest you get it down in your home country as the treatment will be more transparent.

That's all I can say for now, and pray to Almighty that she be cured and make it easy on her and your family.

May Allah help her and you in the situation.

I know someone with this cancer from Pakistan. She has got all her treatment from Pakistan and she is perfectly fine now.

JazakAllah brother. However, at one of the forums I had read (from an expat in jeddah), that due to high prevalence of disease in KSA, even the non specialist hospitals are very good and medical insurance system is lot kinder, so wanted to check if someone else who I can converse with had such experience . Unfortunately, the treatment lasts about a year, which means I can't be with her all the time and secondly, is costly enough that I can only afford it if I continue to earn here while she gets treated in Pakistan.

Thank you for your dua, JazakAllah Khair

JazakAllah, may Allah give her lasting health and long prosperous life

I think too it's best for her to be treated in Pakistan. It's a big hassle to avail Oncology services in King Faisal or National Guard or any other hospital who has the service especially if you or your wife is not an employee/dependent.

Each has a policy and criteria being implemented and it will take time before you will be accomodated plus it will be expensive if you will go through business centers which also has a process.

I also think your wife will be more comfortable to be treated in your country since your family are there and there are lots of Pakistani doctors who are doing great in their field.

Goodluck and I pray that your wife will be fine and both of you will be strong enough to deal with your situation.

Thank you Conniesky for the advice. One question in case you are familiar with it? Are Saudi German, Specialist Medical Center etc. absolutely no good in oncology services? I do understand that government facilities are highly unlikely source.

Thank you for the prayers, may all the blessings be with you.

regards,

I know someone who had breast cancer and she is working in King Abdulaziz Medical City. She had total mastectomy and had her therapy for years in the same hospital and luckily she just got cleared recently and she was happy with the service.

I can't confirm nor affirm if Saudi-German hospital is good or not though🙂

Thanks Conniesky , wish your friend a very healthy and happy future.

regards,

Thank you🙂

@affanhaider,
I guess you must not at the quality of the hospitals here. For the simple reason that Sahaukat Khanum has excellent reputation.

Some insurance companies in Saudi provide cross-country coverages, and/or reimburse plans. You can pay there and get your money back from your insurance company 564359324. Please check your insurance policy documentation for this option.

Well that's true TheLegendLeads , Pakistani hospitals such as Shaukat Khanum, Agha Khan, KIRAN and NORI are best in class .

Thank you for the tip regarding insurance, I will definitely check. I guess I was hoping for a good option here because though family will be there with her all the time, just the fact that I can't be there through every step, didn't feel right .

Thank you for the input.

regards,

You have a point but be careful of the trade-off.
I'm, in overall, very unhappy about treatment quality of non-governmental hospitals here in KSA, the role of insurance and the combination.

True, add to this lack of expats ability to identify best doctors due to lack of local referrals. Point well taken.  Thanks

Dear Conniesky,

We have been able to get a place in King Abdulaziz Medical City (National Guard Hospital), can I bother you to check with your friend a bit detail about her experience there? Who are the most recommended doctors and how are the facilities etc?

We have our first appointment there today and look forward to your feedback.

Regards,
Affan

I don't know about the places in Riyadh but my mother got treated in Erfan Hospital Jeddah... allhamdullilah she is done with her complete treatment and cleared...

Alhmadolillah Sandyy24, may Allah grant her long and prosperous life and keep her healthy and happy....

affanhaider wrote:

Dear Conniesky,

We have been able to get a place in King Abdulaziz Medical City (National Guard Hospital), can I bother you to check with your friend a bit detail about her experience there? Who are the most recommended doctors and how are the facilities etc?

We have our first appointment there today and look forward to your feedback.

Regards,
Affan

The doctor who handled her is gone but her husband is still on-site.

I'll pm you the names of the 3 available Adult Medical Oncology Consultants (specializing in breast cancer), for your info.

With regards to facilities, it's state-of-the-art. The Oncology Clinic is located at the new KASCH (King Abdullah Specialized Children's Hospital) building which was built according to the standards/criteria of  CHOP (Children's Hospital of Philadelphia) 

Goodluck

sent you the names...

Conniesky, you're an angel if I've ever seen one... Bless you

affanhaider wrote:

Conniesky, you're an angel if I've ever seen one... Bless you

it's nothing. I wish I can help more...

Will pray for your wife's fast recovery

Hi

Please help

I am currently being treated for breast cancer in South Africa however I need to be in Riyadh   soon due to work ... I urgently need names of oncologists and which hospitals to look at

Any info will be highly appreciated

Thanking you
Farah

Hi Farah,

May Allah grant you health. Beyond the advice above, my wife is being treated in National Guard Hospital, the Dr's name is Dr. Abdel Rahman Al Shahri and we are Alhamdolillah extremely satisfied with both the hospital facilities and the doctor.

Where you do get treated depends upon the occupation / insurance of your husband. If your husband works for one of the government hospitals its pretty straight forward, however, even if he doesn't but has a family health insurance Class A for Tawuniya or Bupa, National Guard or King Fahd Medical City will be potential options (requires confirmation from insurance companies though). If both of these don't work out, then the only other options available in Riyadh (private hospitals) are Specialized Medical Center and Saudi German Hospital. Initially while we were exploring, we met doctors in both of these and though the facilities don't compare with government hospitals, the doctors seemed decent.

Please don't hesitate to ask if you have any specific query. Again, best of luck with your treatment and may Allah be with you.

Regards,
Affan

Shukran for the promo response

I do have medical insurance class A but don't have anyone working there. I am alone in Riyadh. What would my best bet be? I am almost done with chemotherapy here and will need radiation in Riyadh...

Remember me in your esteemed duas

Farah

No worries at all, we had Bupa Class A first, then I switched organizations mid-way and are on Tawuniya Class A now, both work without anyone working there (not sure about others such as MedGulf etc). For Radiation I'd recommend National Guard over KFMC considering that their setup and machines are newer. Though my wife still has to go through radiation (starting August) but we've seen the setup and will continue there.

If you want I can get you connected with my wife once you land in Saudi, or give you contacts of Dr. and the hospital, obviously going through the procedure herself, she can be a good source of information for you. Here is a link for hospital website http://ngha.med.sa/English/Pages/default.aspx and oncology is based out of King Abdullah Specialist Children Hospital within National Guard Hospital.

Regards,

Thanks that would be most appreciated... once again may Allah make it easy for all suffering with health issues

No worries Farah, we were only able to progress because others chose to help us. Please do inbox and i'll share the required contacts. wish you all the health and happiness.

Farah1604 wrote:

Thanks that would be most appreciated... once again may Allah make it easy for all suffering with health issues

May ALLAH Grant you the Best health and quick recovery and to all the patients , aameen.

Almost 2 weeks in Riyadh and still no luck with treatment... beginning to give up hope now... I am alone here and really don't have the energy for all the running around anymore. Iv Been sent from medical insurance to hospitals and stil no treatment... my radiation is long overdue... if anyone can help I would really appreciate it.

Hi,

My sister is in urgent need of an oncologist for her breast cancer diagnosis in Riyadh. Her ultrasound results showed that she might be at BIRAD 5, but only a biopsy can confirm that. We're urgently looking for a second opinion. Could someone please recommend an oncologist. I'd really appreciate any help I can get.

Depends upon the insurance too where you can go. But my wife was treated by Dr. Abdelrahman alshahri of national guard hospital. Excellent doctor. Private hospital options are Saudi German and specialised medical centre. Diagnosis is mainly test based so most may ask for repeat of test or provision of sample. Hope this helps.

Hi Brother,

I hope that your wife is feeling better, in sha'Allah. I've been going through your posts on here, and they have helped me narrow down some options for my sister. I'd like to know about your experience at National Guard Hospital: does it offer treatment to non-Saudi and non-employee patients? My sister does not have any medical insurance - it has expired. So, she intends to pay her expenses in cash.

Thank you for your prompt reply. I really appreciate it. May Allah SWT bless you and your wife, aameen.

May Allah grant health to your sister. Please feel free to ask any question any time.

If payment is to be in cash, please go to national guard, they have all the facilities. Take your sister to business center in the hospital for registration and taking appointment. Though it will be very very expensive without insurance. Dr abdelrahman alshahri is the name of the doctor

Thank you for the advice. I really appreciate it. May Allah SWT bless you.

AOA Affan,
May Allah SWT give speedy recovery to your wife. Your posts are very helpful and I need some advise from your experience.

I am in Khobar and extremely disappointed with the medical system here as it is not thorough and medical professionals do not care as much as they should.

We are trying to go for diagnoses for my wife and have done a biopsy 5 weeks back but still no response from the hospital. Can you please ping me your contact as we need to figure out if the results are negative or positive. That will determine next steps for us.

Will greatly appreciate your help!

Generally results of biopsy is within 10 days. I live in Khobar,  please tell me which hospital you has biopsy

Almana Dr. Sameena