Oncology in Germany
Over recent decades, global changes in the way we live and rising overall life expectancy have led to cancer accounting for a growing share of the overall disease burden. Today these diseases are already among the most common causes of death, after cardiovascular disease. Cancer radically changes the life of the person affected and of those close to them. Yet in countries with advanced medicine, a diagnosis of «cancer» in most cases is not a death sentence. Doctors today have an extensive range of tools at their disposal for the prevention, control and treatment of cancer.
Cancer treatment in Germany is recognised as one of the most successful in the West. Survival rates for the various types of cancer 5 years after diagnosis and the start of treatment are the highest in the world.
Cancer therapy in Germany is delivered in specialised clinics and departments as well as in comprehensive cancer centres.
For every cancer patient in Germany, treatment always means carefully considered and appropriate therapy (as gentle as possible) matched to how aggressive the tumour is; it means taking the patient's age and psychological needs into account; it means psychological support for the patient and their family; and it means interdisciplinary collaboration between medical oncologists, surgeons, radiologists, specialists in nuclear medicine and radiotherapy, and psycho-oncologists.
The course of the disease and the patient's treatment are discussed regularly at interdisciplinary tumour boards. By combining systemic (chemotherapy) and local (radiofrequency ablation, chemoembolisation) forms of therapy, doctors are able either to halt the spread of cancer cells or to provide full palliative care. The diagnostic and treatment standards followed by these medical institutions are set in line with the latest discoveries in medical science and are updated regularly. For this reason these hospitals take an active part in clinical trials of modern cancer therapies.
