Do you have a breast mass or you know someone who have and planning to have it check? The info on this post may be helpful especially regarding cost of hospital procedures and breast minor surgeries.
iSensey is sharing info on the surgery cost for Core Needle Biopsy for Breast Mass on one breast only and Excision Biopsy for the same mass on the same breast. The two minor surgeries were done in a private hospital in Cebu, Philippines, last April and May 2023. These are day surgeries, out-patient, there is no hospital confinement after the procedure is done.
Take note that the patient only has the suspicious mass on one breast. If the surgery is to check both breasts, meaning the left and right breast have masses to be examined, then the cost of the surgery is higher.
The surgery costs shared on this post are rounded off to the nearest hundred. The Philhealth case rate used in the benefit claim is also shared.
Medical History
Our iSensey colleague, who was the patient, consulted with her Ob Gyn because of the apparent and palpable mass on her right breast.
She underwent breast ultrasound costing P2,800 and a mammogram with tomosynthesis with price at P3,500, on the same day, as ordered by her OB. The results from both tests were not good, she was recommended to get a biopsy for the suspected malignant mass, Bi Rads Category IV.
Her OB referred her to a general and cancer surgeon who scheduled her for Core Needle Biopsy (CNB). She doesn’t have health insurance or HMO, only Philhealth.
The total surgery expense including the surgeon’s professional fee for the CNB is P10,500. Philhealth shouldered P3,640 of this, so our colleague only paid around P7,000 out of pocket. Philhealth case rate used for this breast mass core needle biopsy is 19100.
For those with HMO or medical or health insurance, this surgery is usually covered. Ask your HMO or insurance provider for confirmation.
The histopathology result came out benign for the CNB biopsy, Thank God!, but the recommendation was to undergo Excision Biopsy to be more certain.
So, she did get a second minor ‘day surgery’, this time the cut and subsequent wound is bigger. Cost of the excision biopsy surgery for one breast is P12,400. Philhealth shouldered P8,020 of this under the case rate 19120, so patient paid only around P4,400 out of pocket.
The result for the second surgery came out ‘unremarkable’. But the surgeon during the procedure already informed her that the mass they got for biopsy is most likely the scar from the CNB surgery or from an old infection. The surgeon said that they couldn’t find the 3 cm mass in the location indicated in the ultrasound and mammogram imaging results, even though they have explored deep. And they couldn’t cut and explore other areas of the breast, since they can only check the area indicated in the ultrasound. The surgeon and resident assistant also couldn’t feel any mass when they touch/feel the breast. The surgeon remarked that the breast is very dense.
*The procedure done is not an ultrasound-guided surgery, on both instances. Instead, the surgeon relied on the printed result of the breast ultrasound during the procedure.
Few weeks after the surgery, the patient went back for another consultation because she can still touch and feel the big mass.
The surgeon’s recommendation is for our colleague to get breast MRI as the MRI is the best tool to check her breast. Then they will discuss the next plan of action once the MRI results are in.
Breast MRI Cost
The patient called several hospitals in Cebu mid-May 2023 and the breast MRI cost were as follows:
Cebu Doctor’s Hospital P17,050 if cash, P22,456 if with insurance.
UC Med P22,000.
Chong Hua Hospital Cebu and Mandaue branches P18,492.
The following does not have breast MRI – Perpetual Succour Hospital, ARC Hospital, Velez General Hospital, Maayo Hospital, Visayas Community Hospital.
By the way, the patient strongly advises those with similar case to her, to go to a surgeon specializing in breast; she did not, she went to a surgeon who can do breast surgery but is not specializing on the breast. She is transferring to a breast specialist surgeon before she will get any new test/mri/ultrasound.
Can we make a request? Please help us pray for our colleague, that the mass on her right breast be ultimately benign and nothing serious. Thank you for your prayer and time.