Cancer Treatment In South Africa

Cancer prevalence in South Africa is increasing with each passing day. In 2020, 110,000 new cancer cases were diagnosed in South Africa. Moreover, 56,000 cancer-related deaths were also reported.

In November 2019, BBC News reported that many cancer patients travel to India yearly for cancer treatments. Medical tourism from Africa is around $1 billion every year. According to WHO, more than 95% of the African population travel to European or Asian countries for quality treatments.

It is crucial for patients to get quality care with the latest treatment process at an affordable cost. Hence, Cancer Treatment in countries like India is preferred due to high-quality care and affordable treatment cost.

Now, let us check the cost of cancer treatment.

Cost Of Cancer Treatment in South Africa

The cancer treatment cost in South Africa ranges between $630 - $63,100.

As per the American Institute of Cancer Research, cancer treatments cost around 895 billion $ annually. As cancer technologies advance with each passing day, so are the treatment and drug costs.

For you, we have listed a few reasons why cancer treatment costs are increasing rapidly.

• Innovative surgical procedures
• Advancing technologies,
• Innovative cancer treatments.

Here is a cost comparison table for cancer treatment in South Africa and other countries across the globe. One of the main reasons to visit different countries from different regions is low-cost treatment and the use of the latest process treatment

Country	Cost of Cancer Treatment
South Africa	$630 - $63,100
India	$1,919 - $23,039
USA	$2700-$6000 per visit
Germany	$839 - $32311

Cancer care in India is well-known; cancer hospitals in India provide the best treatments and assist their international patient with basic requirements. They provide them with all the necessary arrangements during the period of treatment. But for some patients who cannot travel, we have listed the best hospital for cancer in South Africa.

Best Cancer Hospitals In South Africa

Like other countries, even South Africa is well-equipped for treatment.

For you, we have listed some of the best cancer hospitals in South Africa.

1. Life Kingsbury Hospital

Life Kingsbury Hospital is one of the premier cancer institutes in Cape Town, South Africa. The hospital has 226 beds, 11 OT rooms, ICU, separate neonatal ICUs, and general wards. For accidents and emergencies, doctors are available on duty 24/7. This hospital provides extra facilities to their international patients like airport transfer, accommodation, and a choice of meals.

2. Lenmed Ahmed Kathrada Private Hospital

Ahmed Kathrada is another leading hospital in South Africa. The institute not only provides the best oncology treatments but is well equipped in providing 80+ procedures, including general surgery services, neurology, ophthalmology procedures like corneal transplants, cardiac treatments, and many others.

3. Life Healthcare Hospital Group

Life Healthcare Hospital Group is a multi-specialized institute, particularly for the privately insured patients, about 8 million individuals. The Institute has 7,655 beds, 664 ICUs, 40 emergency rooms, specialized mental health care facilities, renal dialysis, and life rehabilitation facilities.

Which Cancers Are Treated In South Africa?

The types of cancer treated in South Africa include

• Breast Cancer
• Lung Cancer
• Pancreatic Cancer
• Gastrointestinal Cancers
• Endocrine And Neuroendocrine Cancers
• Urological Cancers
• Hepatobiliary cancers
• Colorectal Cancers

Types Of Cancer Treatments In Africa

The most common types of cancer treatment offered in South Africa include surgery, radiation therapy, and chemotherapy.

Other cancer treatments include

• Brachytherapy (A type of radiation therapy that gives a higher total dose of radiation in a shorter time)
• Stereotactic Radio (A non-surgical precisely-targeted radiation therapy used to treat small tumors and functional abnormalities of the brain).
• Targeted therapy (A type of cancer therapy that attacks specific molecular targets in cancer cells).

These treatments can be alone or in combination, depending on the patient's condition, including type and stage of cancer. A fully-equipped team works to diagnose, prescribe, and deliver the proper cancer treatment to patients in South Africa. The group includes a professional medical and radiation oncologist, surgeon, and nursing staff.

There is constant advancement and science experiments for the betterment of treatments. Some of the technologies are also used in treating cancer in South Africa; lets know more about it.

Technology Of Treatment

South Africa has traditional cancer treatments like chemotherapy, surgery, and radiation therapies. But as the world progresses rapidly, new innovative technologies and medical treatments are arising daily.

Some of the innovative cancer technologies offered across the globe.

1. PET CT

PET CT is one of the latest cancer technologies that deeply detects the molecular activity of the growing cancer cells before opting for any surgical or radiation procedure. It consists of a high-definition PET, LSO crystal, and a high-resolution Pico-3D which helps extensively identify cancer's molecular activity.

2. Stem Cell Therapy

Cancers are now also treated with stem cells. This treatment has successfully reduced the damaging effect or even at times cured cancer. Treating cancer with stem cell therapy or stem cell transplant is a new technique that has shown high positive results. In countries like India, Stem cell therapy hospitals have shown remarkable results.

3. Somatom Scope 32 Slice CT Scanner

Somatom Scope 32 Slice CT Scanner boasts a high-performance Ultra-Fast Ceramics Detector material that visualizes crystal clear tumor images. Additionally, the imaging noise is reduced by up to 25%, which increases patient safety and compliance and delivers accurate dose and quality imaging.

4. Mammography

Proper breast imaging is the crucial step in treating breast cancers. The procedure delivers high-quality breast imaging and consists of a MammomatSelect, which provides an accurate and precise radiation dose, particularly for each patient. This makes setting the dose an easier task for the clinical personnel.

5. Linear Accelerator

This technology is equipped with a 3D imaging guidance that helps to deliver a precise dose to the tumor and also to monitor that nearby normal, and critical organs remain unaffected by the radiation dose.

Conclusion

South Africa has become a leading country with some of the best multi-specialized institutes offering cancer care. However, countries like India is equipped with innovative treatment procedures and technologies. This is the main reason why patients from South Africa prefer to get their treatment from India.