Patient stories
Real experiences from public reporting and patient posts, linked to sources. Individual experiences; outcomes vary.
News
Atlanta man has a benign gallbladder growth removed in ShenzhenReported
News (viral social video)
American content creator completes a nine-test checkup in Hangzhou in two and a half hoursReported
Hospital photoNews73-year-old American architect has spine surgery and cataract operations on both eyes in HangzhouReported
Hospital photoHospital news74-year-old American visitor treated for an acute heart attack at Peking University Third HospitalReported
Reddit
Traveler on a US high-deductible plan gets a same-visit X-ray and prescription for under CNY 140Self-reported · ≈$19.46
News (quoting social media)
American actor reports hip joint surgery in Shanghai for about CNY 30,000Reported · ≈$4,225.35
News
25-year-old New Zealander's lymphoma goes into remission after CAR-T in ShanghaiReported
News
New Zealand man becomes first foreign patient to receive solid-tumor CAR-T in ChinaReported · ≈$139,436.62
News
New Zealand CAR-T patient in Shanghai: total journey reported around USD 65,000Reported · ≈$65,000
Hospital photoNewsMyeloma patient spends three months in Beijing for CAR-T at a private international hospitalReported
Reddit
Vancouver resident's knee surgery in Shenzhen: community accountSelf-reported
YouTube
Irish travel creator documents a dental visit at a new hospital in HuangshanSelf-reported
Hospital photoNews (TikTok and Xiaohongshu posts)British creator flies to Beijing for a sedated endoscopy after long waits at homeReported · ≈$397.46
Hospital photoTikTok, reported by government siteTravel blogger gets an MRI for about $70 at Peking University Shenzhen HospitalReported · ≈$70
Hospital photoNewsNew Zealand myeloma patient joins a CAR-T trial in Shanghai for about $65,000 including airfareReported · ≈$65,000
Patient organisation story
Queensland woman with relapsed myeloma travels to Shanghai for dual-target CAR-TSelf-reported
Reddit
Melbourne patient has crowns and fillings in Zhuhai for less than half the home quoteSelf-reported
YouTube / Xiaohongshu, reported by Yicai
South African blogger walks in for an MRI in Kunming and pays CNY 486Reported · ≈$68.45
Xiaohongshu / Douyin, reported by National Business Daily
Australian in Chengdu has a fish bone removed by endoscopy in 30 minutes for 300 yuanReported · ≈$42.25
Hospital photoNewsKenyan resident collapses in Beijing and is taken to Chaoyang Hospital by a 120-yuan ambulanceReported
Expat magazine
Expat mother's C-section at a Beijing public hospital costs RMB 11,500Reported · ≈$1,619.72
Reddit
Foreign resident has surgery and an 8-day stay at a tier-2 public hospital for about 8,000 RMBSelf-reported · ≈$1,126.76
Xiaohongshu
Patellar dislocation surgery and rehab in China: a 25-year-old Malaysian patient's accountSelf-reported
XiaohongshuGrade-2 meniscus tear managed without surgery: personal account (China)Self-reported
XiaohongshuDental implants for a parent in Suzhou: family accountSelf-reported
XiaohongshuFull-mouth dental implants for an elderly parent in Beijing: family accountSelf-reported
XiaohongshuA first dental implant, step by step: personal account (China)Self-reported
Xiaohongshu
A dental implant in Fuzhou, easier than feared: personal accountSelf-reported
XiaohongshuThree dental implants in Wuhan for about 20,000 CNY: personal accountSelf-reported · ≈$2,820
XiaohongshuCervical radiculopathy treatment and recovery, one year on: personal account (China)Self-reported
XiaohongshuAwake through a heart-attack stent procedure at 38: personal account (China)Self-reported
XiaohongshuA heart-attack hospital stay paid fully out of pocket: personal account (China)Self-reported
XiaohongshuStent placed, surgery a success, still suffering: an honest patient account (China)Self-reported
XiaohongshuTreated thoroughly, yet it spread: a breast cancer patient's account (China)Self-reported
XiaohongshuFourteen years with breast cancer and a recurrence: personal account (China)Self-reported
XiaohongshuAccompanying a father through myeloma treatment: family account (China)Self-reported
Hospital photoRedditJiahui International Hospital (Shanghai): a long-stay patient's list of serious complaintsSelf-reported
Reddit
Appendicitis at a Shanghai public hospital: seen instantly, paid as you goSelf-reported · ≈$2,750
Reddit
Seven hours in a Sanya emergency room with gastroenteritis: what was hardSelf-reported
Hospital photoRedditAnkle surgery at Shanghai Sixth People's Hospital: fast surgery, zero communicationSelf-reported
Reddit
Ankle X-ray and CT in Xi'an as an English speaker: consent and language gapsSelf-reported
Reddit
IVF at a Chinese public hospital as an expat couple: very low cost, little privacySelf-reported
News
Liposuction in Shenzhen for a 61-year-old New Zealander at about a third of the home priceReported
News
A 36-year-old New Zealander's myeloma is brought under control in Shanghai after CAR-TReported
News
Lipoma removal in Hangzhou for under 5,000 CNY: a Sydney patient's mixed accountReported · ≈$1,067
News
A Sydney nurse's dental implant in China for 2,000 USD: cheaper, and a smaller treatment planReported · ≈$2,000
Hospital photoNewsOscar Chalupsky, 62, turns to Ruijin Hospital Shanghai after three countries call his myeloma hopelessReported
Web
Hernia surgery at a Shanghai public hospital's VIP clinic: one great result, one near missSelf-reported
Web
An American teacher's shoulder surgery in Shenzhen: smooth operation, rough edges around itSelf-reported
Reddit
A first visit to Shanghai's public mental health hospital: 335 CNY, same-day, self-paySelf-reported
Reddit
Rabies post-exposure treatment at a Hangzhou 24-hour ER: 26 CNY to be seen, English-speaking doctorSelf-reported
Reddit
Lumbar disc herniation in Shanghai: one hospital offered next-day surgery, a second look changed the planSelf-reported