Indications for ion therapy

  

At the Clinic for Radiation Oncology and Radiation Therapy of Heidelberg University Hospital, the broad use of ion therapy is being thoroughly prepared through clinical studies in which the efficacy in comparison with conventional radiation therapy is examined. For the coming years, a number of clinical studies in Heidelberg are being planned. We will keep you informed of them on this website. 

 

In the long-term the estimated ten percent of cancer patients in whom tumour growth cannot be controlled with conventional radiation therapy because it is technically impossible to administer a sufficiently high radiation dose will benefit from radiation at the Heidelberg Ion-Beam Therapy Center (HIT). These patients have tumors

• that are located deep inside the body,
• that are extremely resistant to conventional radiation,
• that are surrounded by highly radiation-sensitive healthy tissue, such as the optic nerve or bowel, which should not be damaged during treatment.

 

In the following we have listed treated indications (tumors that are already irradiated at HIT), and further indications (tumors for which radiation therapists anticipate much greater success from radiation treatment with ions).