The CyberKnife Centre Munich ranks among Europe’s top medical institutions for the radiosurgical treatment of benign and malignant tumours.
University Hospital of Munich (Grosshadern) on the initiative of two of Europe’s foremost radiosurgeons, Dr Berndt Wowra and Dr Alexander Muacevic.
The CyberKnife Clinic collaborates with the Charité University Hospital and other medical centres in Germany and around the world. The centre employs a team of professional doctors and specialists, who together achieve great success in the treatment of cancer.
The CyberKnife European Centre for Radiosurgery is certified as an Expert European Radiosurgical Centre by the company that developed the CyberKnife system, Accuray. The certificate confirms that the centre employs specialists with knowledge of radiosurgical systems, provides high-quality medical services, uses innovative, safe therapy methods and uses state-of-the-art quality equipment.
The CyberKnife 6 unit is the latest model with an integrated InCise 2 collimator. It is a piece of special equipment that improves the accuracy and intensity of the radiation, which further expands the capabilities of the CyberKnife. The unit is currently considered to be the most progressive and effective method of non-surgical treatment of cancer, even in its most advanced stages. The CyberKnife treatment has a success rate of up to 95% and is in a leading position compared to other methods of fighting cancer.
More than 11,000 CyberKnife operations have been carried out over the years at the Radiosurgical Centre, including for international patients – the highest number of operations in Europe among similar medical centres. Patients choose the CyberKnife Clinic in Munich because of the treatment devices, which only a few large hospitals in the world offer. In addition, experienced doctors who follow the most effective and modern treatment protocols work here.
CyberKnife is an innovative, effective and safe method of incisionless cancer treatment. Its principle is to expose abnormal tissue to a narrow beam of radiation, which destroys the tumour cells at the genetic level. Healthy tissue remains untouched. The unit detects the location of the tumour on its own and directs the beam with an accuracy of 0,1 mm. There is no need to fix the patient’s head or body and no need for anaesthesia. The unit detects the slightest movement of the patient and redirects the radiation.
The CyberKnife Centre Munich treats all types of benign and malignant diseases, located in the brain (neurinoma, meningioma, arteriovenous malformations, metastases, etc.), spinal cord, prostate and pancreas, kidney, liver, lungs, breast, prostate, iris, etc. Thanks to the CyberKnife, it is now possible to treat the most difficult-to-reach neoplasms, e.g. in the brainstem, optic or auditory nerves, or the pancreas.
Cancer therapy at the CyberKnife Centre is carried out on a strictly individual basis and patients are admitted to the procedure after a thorough examination and approval by a multidisciplinary committee.
The average cost of CyberKnife treatment in Munich starts at €19,000,00.
The unique benefit of the procedure, especially for foreigners, lies in the short duration of treatment. Unless a complete diagnosis or additional examination is required, therapy at the CyberKnife clinic takes a few days.
The patient does not need any special preparation for the procedure. You can eat and take medication as usual. An MRI, CT or PET-CT scan must be carried out before the tumour can be located. The centre uses state-of-the-art, high-resolution diagnostic equipment. The examination may also be carried out in other clinics, but the images must meet certain requirements – they must be no more than 3 months old and the images must be legible. For tumours in the liver or kidneys, a radiologist first injects markers to visualise the neoplasm. The diagnostic results are transferred to the planning module of the operating robot by the specialist. It can take up to 24 hours to prepare the machine.
Generally, a CyberKnife cancer treatment requires one session of 40-90 minutes. If necessary, the procedure can be divided into several short sessions. CyberKnife surgery is painless and the patient is conscious. Immediately after the procedure, the patient can return to normal life. No hospitalization is necessary, so free time can be devoted to leisure activities, e.g. sightseeing in Munich. After 3 months, the patient should be examined again to check the effectiveness of the treatment. You do not need to come back to the clinic. It is sufficient to have an examination and to send the results to your doctor, who will then make a recommendation.
A great advantage of the centre is its cooperation with leading medical institutions around the world. In this way, doctors share their valuable experience and develop and implement new methods of diagnosis and treatment of oncology. The CyberKnife Centre collaborates with the world’s leading centres for neuro-oncology, prostate pathology, kidney tumours, lung cancer, pancreatic cancer, breast cancer, neuroendocrine tumours and pediatric oncology. There is also a partnership with the University Hospital of Munich and the Clinic of the Technical University of Munich.
MRI images before and after the CyberKnife treatment demonstrate the effectiveness of the procedure. On the left is an acoustic neurinoma in the right cerebellum. On the right, 2.5 years later, the benign neoplasm has disappeared, with only a scar in the area of the internal auditory canal.
PET-CT images of the spinal column. On the left, metastasis in the spinal column is visualised. The right picture was taken six months after the CyberKnife treatment. The tumour has disappeared and bone marrow has formed in its place.
Images of a cerebral arteriovenous malformation in a 15-year-old patient. On the left is an image taken before treatment and on the right a positive result one year after treatment.
The MRI scan on the left shows two metastases in the brain as a result of lung cancer. Just one hour of CyberKnife therapy helped to get rid of the pathology, as the image on the right shows results 4 months after treatment.
If inpatient treatment is required, CyberKnife Centre provides comfortable single or double rooms. It is also possible to accommodate a patient with a companion. All rooms are best equipped with a television, WiFi, a separate toilet and a shower. There are three different menus to choose from, and you can also choose an individual menu.
