DELRAY BEACH, Fla. – Ben Pumpian has always been an outdoorsman.
“My childhood was spent in the sun,” he said.
He’s now paying the price with an ongoing battle against skin cancer.
“If I had known I would live this long I would have taken better care of myself,” he said with a chuckle.
Pumpian, 96, was diagnosed with Basel Cell Carcinoma over a decade ago, and every time it comes back, it means another visit to the doctor’s office for treatment. That was until he discovered a mobile radiation van that could pull up right in his driveway.
“I think it’s great,” he said.
Horizon Medical has been in the mobile radiation business for 20 years, but now, more than ever, this kind of door-to-door service is giving patients a welcomed alternative to office and hospital visits.
“If they knew they had the option, people would jump at the chance to get treated at their home or home health facility instead of going to a hospital,” said Dr. Mark Pomper with Horizon Medical Services.
The process is actually faster than going elsewhere for treatment. Pumpian is in and out in under an hour.
“The actual treatment takes the same amount of time but if you go to a hospital you have to register and wait, but when we come here, we get the patient set up and the patient gets the treatment,” said Pomper.
Pumpian said it allows him to save time and energy which he prefers to spend with his girlfriend at home.
“I’m very satisfied. He comes here quick, it’s painless and he’s done a good job,” he said.
Mobile radiation therapy can also be used to treat breast, crevice and prostate cancer and there are now many other medical services that are mobile and covered by insurance.