Prostate Cancer

Appointments

To make an appointment, please call the UCSF Prostate Cancer Center at (415) 353-7171 or request an appointment online. If your insurance plan requires, you may need a referral from your primary care doctor — or the doctor currently treating you — to make your first appointment.

After scheduling an appointment, complete the physician contact information form, to provide information about other doctors treating you, and bring the form with you to the clinic. Your doctor may ask that additional forms or questionnaires are completed before your exam.

If you have any questions regarding these forms, contact the Prostate Cancer Center.

First Appointment
Health Insurance, Self-Pay and Fees
Social Work Services
More Information

Your First Appointment

We recommend that you bring a family member or friend to your first appointment. We make every effort to see you as close to your scheduled appointment time as possible. However, there may be delays beyond our control.

The review of your medical records is a vital part of your evaluation at UCSF Medical Center. Please bring your test reports and records to your appointment, unless you're asked to fax them in advance. Please bring the following reports:

• Radiology Reports — Recent radiology reports and scans, including X-rays, magnetic resonance images (MRIs)and ultrasound scans films or CDs, that relate to your medical condition and written reports that accompany those films.
• Pathology Reports — Pathology reports of any biopsy or test you had done. Please bring glass pathology slides from the lab or office where the test was performed.
• Other Records — Copies of all records relevant to your medical condition, including your last laboratory report and the mosts recent report or dictation from the doctor who referred you to UCSF. This may include records from your primary care physician, oncologist or surgeon.
• Insurance Cards — Copies of your insurance cards.
• Doctor Contact Information — A list of all of your doctors including their mailing addresses, telephone and fax numbers.

Health Insurance, Self-Pay and Fees

If you have health insurance, please contact your insurance company before your appointment to review your benefits and to obtain approval, called "prior authorization," for your visit, if required. If you don't obtain necessary authorization, you may be responsible for all charges associated with your care.

If your insurance plan requires prior authorization for office visits to a specialist, please fax referrals and authorizations to the center prior to your appointment.

Most insurance companies require a co-payment for each visit. Check your insurance card. It should state the amount you pay per visit.

Many insurance plans have deductibles. UCSF will first bill your insurance plan. If you have not yet met your deductible, you will be billed by your insurance company.

HMO — If your insurance is with a health maintenance organization (HMO), you must bring a referral-authorization from your insurance company, referring doctor or primary care doctor. Otherwise, you will be billed for services. For all follow-up care, we will obtain authorizations from your insurance company.

Health Plan Savings Account — If you have a health plan savings account, you must notify your insurance company that you're receiving care at UCSF. Your insurance company will activate your savings card for care at UCSF. This process typically takes 10 to 14 days so please keep this in mind when you schedule your appointment.

Self-pay — If you don't have insurance, you are considered a "self-pay" patient. At your first appointment, you will be asked to make a $345 deposit when you check-in to see your doctor. The deposit will follow-up visits will be $160.

Payment may be made with cash, credit card or check. The deposit is applied to your exam and services provided by doctors in the Prostate Cancer Center. (UCSF provides a 30 percent discount to self-pay patients.)

If your doctor performs tests or procedures that involve another department, such as pathology or radiiology, you will be billed separately by that department. These tests may include:

• Pathology Slides and Radiology Films — Your doctor may ask that your pathology slides and radiology films from other facilities or hospitals are reviewed by specialists at UCSF. The cost of the review may range from $400 to $2,500. If you're a self-pay patient, ask the practice assistant for a detailed cost estimate before your appointment.
• Prostate Biopsy — There are two charges for this procedure — a fee from the doctor performing the biopsy, which is typically a minimum $900; and a charge from the Pathology department for processing and reviewing the biopsy specimens, which is typically a minimum $5,200. Eight to 14 specimens may be needed. Please contact the practice assistant for more information about these costs.

If you would like to speak to a UCSF Financial Counsel, please call (415) 885-7803 or fax information to (415) 885-3505.

Social Work Services

Social workers are available to meet with you and your family to discuss financial issues, such as short- or long-term disability income, insurance coverage and special programs that assist people with cancer; support groups and referrals to a psychologist or chaplain; family issues such as care giving and talking to children about cancer; and lodging and transportation.

To contact a social worker, call the Cancer Resource Center at (415) 885-3693 and ask for the social worker assigned to your doctor.

More Information

Reviewed by health care specialists at UCSF Medical Center.
Last updated January 16, 2009