Forty emails before a flight to Hainan

For Andrei and his wife, deciding to travel meant getting answers about treatment, language and the cost of being far from home.

Shared by Shengshi Medical Travel; edited for clarity and privacy. This account describes one family's experience, not clinical evidence or a guarantee of treatment results.

After another recurrence

Andrei, a 54-year-old Russian patient whose name has been changed, had already undergone surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy for a head and neck tumour. When the disease returned again, speaking and swallowing became increasingly difficult. His family began looking beyond the options they had discussed locally. A report about boron neutron capture therapy, or BNCT, in Boao Lecheng brought them to a place they had never visited—and to a team they had never met.

Questions that could not wait until arrival

Between 18 May and 14 June 2026, the family and Shengshi Medical Travel exchanged around forty emails. They wanted to know whether his records could be reviewed before departure, how he would speak with the doctors, what the proposed assessment involved and which costs remained uncertain. We organised the records and questions for a remote multidisciplinary discussion. On 1 June, the family spoke with the clinical team through an interpreter. The conversation covered suitability, alternatives, possible side effects and the limits of predicting an individual response.

A plan they could read in their own language

After the discussion, the couple received a Russian-language itinerary and a cost breakdown. Hospital charges and travel coordination were listed separately. Confirmed arrangements were distinguished from items that depended on the examination in China. On 14 June they arrived in Haikou. An airport meeting, suitable accommodation and Russian-language support made the first day less unfamiliar. These arrangements did not remove the medical uncertainty, but they meant the family did not have to solve every practical problem on their own.

The evening before treatment

The night before treatment, Andrei was anxious again. The coordinator helped him put his remaining questions to the clinical team and went back over the agreed schedule in Russian. Treatment then proceeded under the hospital’s supervision. In the account the family shared with us, fatigue was part of his immediate experience. That is one person’s account, not a description of what everyone should expect from BNCT. Monitoring and decisions about adverse effects remained the responsibility of the treating clinicians.

Returning with a follow-up plan

The family later reported encouraging follow-up findings and greater confidence with eating and speaking. Before returning home, they needed more than a farewell: available hospital records, agreed translations and a clear plan for the next review. For our team, the value of the journey was not a promise that a particular technology would work. It was helping a family ask informed questions, understand their arrangements and stay connected with care after crossing a border.

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