More than doctors' visits

A visitor watches a South Korean plastic surgery promotional film at an international travel expo in Beijing.[Photo provided to China Daily]

More outbound Chinese are melding medical care with traditional tourism, Yang Feiyue reports.

Chen is sick.

That he knew. What he didn't know was what to do about it.

So the 72-year-old Beijinger, who prefers to give only his surname, visited two top Beijing hospitals.

He got two different responses about treating－or not treating－the chronic lymphatic leukemia he was diagnosed with in October 2013.

So, he traveled to Japan the next February. He needed a definite diagnosis.

And wanted to enjoy himself a bit.

"One (Chinese hospital) told me to wait since there were no symptoms. Another gave me pills."

The Japanese hospital also told him to wait until he was symptomatic. The doctor extensively explained the disease's development－something he appreciated since he'd only had brief sessions with Chinese doctors.

"The (Japanese) doctor was patient and reasonable," he says.

The process lasted over an hour.

It only cost about $85 for everything, including bone-marrow tests.

Chen and his wife also shopped in Tokyo's Ginza district, which he says helped take his mind off his anxieties about his illness.