Celebrity treatment

Cancer treatment

Where do celebrities like Kylie Minogue, Marianne Faithfull and others go for cancer treatment? To France.

But there is nothing stopping British cancer patients following celebrities and taking advantage of superior French hospitals.  A new website, Having Fun After Cancer, highlights some of the French centres that play host to celebrities seeking better treatment – and under new EU laws it may be possible to have the NHS fund the same treatment.

France has some of the best cancer treatment in the world; even the NHS admits this. Britain is getting better, but once hospital treatment finishes – it’s  “take these pills every day for the next five years”.  Then you’ll get a hurried check-up every six months in a clinic that can resemble Piccadilly Circus.  And when I asked a French surgeon if she had mixed wards in her hospital (the bane of patients in some NHS hospitals) she looked at me in horror.  “What on earth would make you want that?”

Drugs – the medicinal kind – are the basis of modern cancer treatment, but these are hormonal drugs, often fought over in the Courts for our treatment (remember Herceptin?) – but capable of producing horrible side effects such as blindness and skin rashes. What no-one tells 95% of British patients is that side effects from these drugs often need specialist treatment, which the NHS is loath to provide.  Unless you are a celebrity – then off you go France.

French cancer treatment doesn’t stop with hospital visits.  They know side effects are going to be with you for a long time, so provide excellent care, often at a local medical spa. No prizes for guessing British post cancer survival rates hover a blush-making bottom of European Statistics; France comes top of table.

So when you need treatment or TLC for hormonal drug side effects, how can you follow celebrities to France?

Best way is letter of introduction from any doctor, listing your medical history. Send this to the Medical Director of your chosen spa, and you are in the system.  Can’t find the right person? The tourist office will be able to help.

French doctors understand side effects of hormonal drugs, and help you get through the five years’ treatment cycle as easily as possible. There is expert help, allied to proven therapies which are usually very pampering:  think massage, face treatments for dry skin, reflexology, etc. All you have to do is lie back, knowing the massage or treatment you are having is supervised by medical staff.

When the figures came out in The Lancet, showing Britain way down the tables for post cancer survival, I asked what plans the Dept. Health had to copy post cancer care in Europe.

“None” – came back arrogant reply.

One wonders if this is because the treatments are often similar to ‘beauty’ treatments?  But charities like Macmillan have done extensive studies proving their benefits.

After cancer treatment in London, I tapped into the French system, and now every few weeks off I go for a short break. I call this medical treatment; any fly on the way will know that I constantly have a smile on my face.  Talking to doctors about any niggling worries or problems that have cropped up, I then indulge in treatments, and the only nasty side is knowing that many of the local patients are getting this on their health schemes.

There doesn’t seem to be a language problem. You can request an English-speaking doctor, and many therapists and staff speak English; but medicine is international; just lie back and leave them to sort out your massage, skin problems, or whatever.

Most medical spas specialising in post cancer treatment have the word ‘Bain’ in their names; this is because treatments followed healing thermal waters.  At Aix-les-Bains you see patients smiling as tiny jets of warm water play on throat cancer sites.  Brides-les-Bains is a lovely old Thermal spa with aromatherapy massage and reflexology and the chance to lose weight with fantastic menus; useful if hormonal drugs have caused weight gain.

The other side of France is La Roche Posay.  They have been treating patients here ever since a knight’s horse fell into the river and was cured of eczema.  Today it’s more likely that patients come to have special warm water massages to restore dried-out cancer skin; the selenium in the water is particularly helpful.

Originally the spa developed skincare to disguise burn marks, and just grew.  The medics produced a fantastic range of skincare products, using the local water, and recently they developed a range specially for post cancer patients.  Now, the skincare production has been taken over by Vichy, and these products are going to be available in Britain at chemists under the name of La Roche Posay skincare– so you can use the same creams as the celebrities.

Typically French, La Roche Posay realised women like to look good, so not only are skin creams formulated for post cancer, but so are cosmetics.  My favourite is a mascara developed especially for cancer patients; any patient who has despaired of ever seeing their eyelashes again, should try this.
Looking in the mirror you see you have almost-celebrity style lashes.  Sitting next to me at the make-up bar – nothing  ‘hospital-like’ about this treatment centre, a fellow Brit suddenly beamed: Vive La France – I’ve got my face back!