A foreign patient treated at Sun Medical Center delivers gratitude

-Having hope she can live longer

Despite a difficult domestic medical environment due to the bad spread of COVID-19, excellent surgical prognosis for a foreign patient has appeared as a good news.

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This is the case of Paleeva Elmira, 51, who successfully completed breast cancer surgery at Sun Medical Center (Chairperson Doohoon Sun, Director Sunwoo Nam).

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Paleeva Elmira, from Almaty, Kazakhstan, was diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer at her local hospital. She tried to take chemotherapy there, but she had a referral to try a hospital in Korea.

As it was the time when the pandemic was spreading, Paleeva Elmira and her family had to think about that carefully. After they confirmed the high level of medical service and surgical success in Korea, they decided to take a treatment in Korea and visited the Sun Medical Cancer Center.

Having visited the Sun Medical Center, she quickly went through the necessary tests. Through a cancer integration conference, she could set her treatment plan to take surgery after chemotherapy. After her first and second chemotherapy, she returned to Kazakhstan but when she tried to come back to Korea again, COVID-19 on the rise blocked her trip and she was unable to take the next treatment.

Yunhwa Jeong, the chief of Hematology and Oncology, Sun Medical Center, advised that the chemotherapy could not be stopped once started and sent data related to chemotherapy and treatment plans to the local hospital in Kazakhstan, helping the treatment to be continued.

After completing the chemotherapy in Kazakhstan, she decided to go back to Korea based on the opinion of her doctor that her surgery is available.

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After returning to Sun Medical Center, she went through exams including PET-CT and ultrasound, and was sure of her surgery available at a cancer integration conference.

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In September, the surgeon Jiman Yoo of Sun Medical Center performed a successful operation and she is on the recovery.

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“I had to take the treatment very far from home, but I didn't feel like I was away from home,” she said. “The quiet and clean environment resembles my hometown of Almaty, so I feel like I'm at home.”

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She added, “As the chief doctor Yoonhwa Jung guided well about her treatment procedures, she was able to follow them well. The chief Jiman Yoo also explained various surgical options in details, and gave me specific information on what kind of surgery he was going to do and what his prognosis would be after the surgery.”

“As the doctors always smiled at me and treated me kindly, I always felt good and comfortable.” she commented.

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At the end of the day, she said, “I have got hope that I can live longer.” “I am very grateful for allowing me to see my children again and spend more time with my family.”

Sun Medical Center provides a 1:1 service of an international medical team for the patients from English-speaking areas, China, Russia, and Mongolia. The team consists of local coordinators who used to be a doctor, helps foreign patients communicate, and accommodates convenience.

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The team also operates a limousine service to pick up foreign patients from the airport to the Sun Medical Center. 

Upon the request of a patient, a hotel reservation near the Medical Center or a Daejeon tour during the hospital stay is available.

With the website in multiple languages, foreign patients can search for the information about the hospital and contact a coordinator to make appointments online.