Archive · 18 Sep 2026
Cancer Patients Travel to China for Cheaper Advanced Treatment
Some cancer patients are traveling to China for a treatment called CAR-T therapy.
They are doing this because the treatment can cost much less there than in the United States.
Others go because China offers certain treatments that are not available in their home countries.
Michael Walters from New Zealand went to Shanghai after earlier treatments did not work.
He was later told that his lymphoma was in complete remission.
Another patient, Josh Bronkhorst, went to China for a CAR-T treatment for solid tumors.
China approved that treatment in June.
A Shanghai hospital says it has treated about 30 patients from 12 countries since 2023.
Doctors and patients say the treatment can be helpful, but it is not considered a miracle cure.
CAR-T therapy in China reportedly costs $150,000 to $230,000, compared with $550,000 to $850,000 in the United States.
Patients from New Zealand, the United States, Europe, Canada, and Southeast Asia are seeking treatment in Shanghai.
New Zealand patient Michael Walters achieved complete remission after receiving CAR-T therapy at Shanghai SinoUnited Hospital.
China approved the world’s first CAR-T treatment for solid tumors in June, attracting patients seeking an otherwise unavailable option.
Shanghai SinoUnited Hospital says it has treated about 30 international patients from 12 countries since 2023.
- Who
- Cancer patients from New Zealand, the United States, Europe, Canada, Southeast Asia, and other countries, along with Chinese hospitals and doctors.
- What
- International patients are traveling to Shanghai for CAR-T cancer treatment because it is cheaper or because some treatments are available there first.
- When
- China began allowing foreign patients to receive CAR-T treatment in 2021; Shanghai SinoUnited Hospital has treated about 30 international patients since 2023.
- Where
- Shanghai, China, including Shanghai SinoUnited Hospital and Jiahui Hospital.
- Why
- Patients are seeking lower treatment costs and access to CAR-T therapies that may not be available in their home countries.
Reasons Patients Choose China
Treatment Limits and Considerations
Cost of care
Reasons Patients Choose China
Patients such as Michael Walters may choose China because CAR-T treatment there can cost less than half as much as comparable treatment offered in the United States or Australia.
Treatment Limits and Considerations
The treatment remains expensive, with reported costs in China ranging from $150,000 to $230,000.
Access to newer therapy
Reasons Patients Choose China
Patients such as Josh Bronkhorst traveled to China because a CAR-T treatment for solid tumors was available there and not elsewhere, according to the article.
Treatment Limits and Considerations
Bronkhorst said the treatment was not a miracle drug, indicating that availability does not guarantee a cure.
China’s biotechnology progress
Reasons Patients Choose China
Chinese health authorities approved a CAR-T treatment for solid tumors, and hospitals report growing interest from overseas patients.
Treatment Limits and Considerations
The article presents individual patient outcomes and hospital-reported figures, rather than evidence that all international patients will achieve remission.
- China CAR-T cost
- About $150,000 to $230,000, according to The Wall Street Journal report cited in the article.
- United States CAR-T cost
- About $550,000 to $850,000.
- Example patient
- Michael Walters, a 25-year-old from New Zealand with non-Hodgkin lymphoma.
- Walters’s outcome
- He was reported to be in complete remission after treatment in Shanghai.
- Foreign-patient policy
- China began allowing foreign patients to receive CAR-T treatment in 2021.
- International patients treated
- Shanghai SinoUnited Hospital says it has treated about 30 patients from 12 countries since 2023.
- Solid-tumor treatment
- China approved a CAR-T treatment for a type of stomach and upper-small-intestine cancer in June; the article describes it as the first CAR-T treatment approved for solid tumors.