Cancer Treatment Centers of America??????

womack1424
womack1424 Member Posts: 38
in Colorectal Cancer #1
We are looking for new treatment options, talking to CTCA, anyone out there have first hand knowledge????

Comments

  • geotina
    geotina Member Posts: 2,111 Member
    #2
    CTCA
    Nana2's husband Jim is currently being treated at the one in Zion, Illinois. She doesn't post much but if you send her a personal message she may see it and give you some information on their experience.

    Tina
  • herdizziness
    herdizziness Member Posts: 3,624 Member
    #3
    MY dear
    I'm sure that no one is ignoring your question, it's just one that comes up so often, that if you do a history, you should come up with many answers.
    Most of those answer will be as such:
    If you have good insurance and a good amount of money for what the insurance doesn't cover, then you should be in good hands.
    Cancer Centers of America are a strictly for PROFIT company, if you are on medicare or any type of lower income insurance they will not talk to you(well, from what I understand they will talk to you until you tell them about medicare.)
    MD Anderson, Standford, Ohio State and so many other hospitals around our country specialize in cancer that are not into just your pocket book, that you might want to look at them first. Many people can recommend many different hospitals that they have been treated at and treated VERY WELL at, if you will mention what state you are in the recommendations I'm sure will be forth coming.
    I should also note, that I'm sure CCofA does a wonderful job on your cancer as the other hospitals as they specialize as well.
  • womack1424
    womack1424 Member Posts: 38
    #4
    geotina said:

    CTCA
    Nana2's husband Jim is currently being treated at the one in Zion, Illinois. She doesn't post much but if you send her a personal message she may see it and give you some information on their experience.

    Tina

    Thanks
    We have been recommended to go to Zion as well I will check with her.
  • womack1424
    womack1424 Member Posts: 38
    #5
    geotina said:

    CTCA
    Nana2's husband Jim is currently being treated at the one in Zion, Illinois. She doesn't post much but if you send her a personal message she may see it and give you some information on their experience.

    Tina

    Thanks
    We have been recommended to go to Zion as well I will check with her.
  • Annabelle41415
    Annabelle41415 Member Posts: 6,742 Member
    #6
    Options
    Good luck in your journey. Many people find this place a factory of tests, but they have always helped many people. Hope your experience is wonderful.

    Kim
  • steveandnat
    steveandnat Member Posts: 886
    #7
    I agree
    I agree with the comment about their screening process. I called them early on and even with private insurance since i didn't have out of network coverage the cost out of my pocket was so high I didn't pursue any more. If you live near their centers I think they might be good.
    Jeff
  • chawk
    chawk Member Posts: 2
    #8
    CTCA in Tulsa
    I need to let you know about our experience with CTCA in Tulsa. I have read both good and bad reports, but not what we experienced in 2005 with my Dad. He was scheduled to go to MD Anderson in Houston but the weekend before a hurricane hit. We were panicked because he was Stage 3 kidney cancer when they finally figured it all out. I happened to be in Tulsa on a Sunday afternoon and we stopped in to talk to CTCA. They were very nice and said they would accept his Medicare and co-insurance, he was put on their waiting list. They gave us so much hope. About a week later we got the call to come. It was a 3 hour drive from his rural Oklahoma home. We felt the treatment was very caring and that he was being well taken care of. They hooked him up to an IV and said he needed to get a little weight on so surgery could be done, sounded logical. They were so happy that in 3 days he had gained 10 pounds, until my son visited and called me to say that it was all in his legs, they were huge. Fast forward 3 weeks death is imminent, his body is so full of fluid the skin is splitting, 30% function of the kidneys and a constant IV drip will do that. I had questioned the IV fluid and I was told that "dehydration is very painful". We were reassured over and over that they would keep him comfortable until the end, not to worry. All of a sudden one day they are releasing him, he is to go home or to a nursing home THAT DAY. They had everything set up for a transfer to a nursing home immediately. My mother was completely confused and scared at that point. I worked at a small rural hospital and I arranged a bed there, problem was it took the ambulance 5 hours to get him there and CTCA had provided NO pain relief for him. They promised they would make him comfortable but did nothing. He passed almost exactly 24 hours after he arrived at my hospital. The cancer did not kill him, his lungs had filled with so much fluid he drowned before our eyes. He passed on October 19, 2005. On March 10 we received the answer to our questions when he received a birthday card from CTCA wishing him a Happy 71st Birthday from your friends at CTCA. THEY LISTED HIM AS A SURVIVOR! When you see their survival rates that they so proudly "publish" remember my Dad and who knows how many more "survivors".
  • herdizziness
    herdizziness Member Posts: 3,624 Member
    #9
    chawk said:

    CTCA in Tulsa
    I need to let you know about our experience with CTCA in Tulsa. I have read both good and bad reports, but not what we experienced in 2005 with my Dad. He was scheduled to go to MD Anderson in Houston but the weekend before a hurricane hit. We were panicked because he was Stage 3 kidney cancer when they finally figured it all out. I happened to be in Tulsa on a Sunday afternoon and we stopped in to talk to CTCA. They were very nice and said they would accept his Medicare and co-insurance, he was put on their waiting list. They gave us so much hope. About a week later we got the call to come. It was a 3 hour drive from his rural Oklahoma home. We felt the treatment was very caring and that he was being well taken care of. They hooked him up to an IV and said he needed to get a little weight on so surgery could be done, sounded logical. They were so happy that in 3 days he had gained 10 pounds, until my son visited and called me to say that it was all in his legs, they were huge. Fast forward 3 weeks death is imminent, his body is so full of fluid the skin is splitting, 30% function of the kidneys and a constant IV drip will do that. I had questioned the IV fluid and I was told that "dehydration is very painful". We were reassured over and over that they would keep him comfortable until the end, not to worry. All of a sudden one day they are releasing him, he is to go home or to a nursing home THAT DAY. They had everything set up for a transfer to a nursing home immediately. My mother was completely confused and scared at that point. I worked at a small rural hospital and I arranged a bed there, problem was it took the ambulance 5 hours to get him there and CTCA had provided NO pain relief for him. They promised they would make him comfortable but did nothing. He passed almost exactly 24 hours after he arrived at my hospital. The cancer did not kill him, his lungs had filled with so much fluid he drowned before our eyes. He passed on October 19, 2005. On March 10 we received the answer to our questions when he received a birthday card from CTCA wishing him a Happy 71st Birthday from your friends at CTCA. THEY LISTED HIM AS A SURVIVOR! When you see their survival rates that they so proudly "publish" remember my Dad and who knows how many more "survivors".

    D@mn them
    Wow, I'm so sorry, for what he went through, for what your mom went through and for what you went through. Dang, this really brought tears to my eyes.
    I am glad however that you took the time to write it.
    Although it was five years ago, I know your pain is still vivid and my thoughts are with you and your family.
    Winter Marie
  • chawk
    chawk Member Posts: 2
    #10
    herdizziness said:

    D@mn them
    Wow, I'm so sorry, for what he went through, for what your mom went through and for what you went through. Dang, this really brought tears to my eyes.
    I am glad however that you took the time to write it.
    Although it was five years ago, I know your pain is still vivid and my thoughts are with you and your family.
    Winter Marie

    I appreciate that
    Thank you for your thoughts for us. He was 'only' 70, his first great grandbaby was born 9 days after he left us. She was breach and ended up after a long labor being taken C section. My son swears that grandpa held onto her foot to keep her from being born because it would have killed her. She loved having her feet played with as an infant, he said it was because grandpa tickled her feet as he held her.

    I now sell a particular brand of insurance that includes a cancer policy. Because of that I work with folks going through various stages of the disease and treatment almost every day. It's a very sad and scarey time when you get diagnosed for not only you but also your family. 2 things I always try to convey to my new policyholders are: 1. you know when something is not right, get checked out! 2. Do your due diligence before you decide where to be treated, even if it's across the country go where they can best treat you not where they have the best 'story'.

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