The National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT) Heidelberg has again been certified as an Oncology Center by the German Cancer Society (DKG). The Oncology Center unites all certified organ cancer centers at Heidelberg University Hospital (UKHD). Through the quality assurance process associated with the recertification, the DKG aims to further optimize the care of oncological patients.
The NCT Heidelberg is a joint institution of the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg University Hospital (UKHD) and German Cancer Aid (DKH).
For oncology centers, the DKG defines quality criteria according to which cancer patients are to be clinically cared for and which are reviewed on the occasion of certification. The panel of experts responsible for the audit has now once again certified that the NCT Heidelberg meets the demanding quality criteria. In addition, the certified Oncology Centers are characterized by the fact that various departments and practicing experts work together in a networked and interdisciplinary manner. Certification as an Oncology Center is a prerequisite for funding as an Oncology Center of Excellence, which the NCT Heidelberg received for the fourth time by German Cancer Aid (DKH) in July 2022.
In their assessment of the Oncology Center, the experts particularly recognized that the NCT Heidelberg is constantly improving the care of cancer patientes on a scientifically sound basis. One focus is on personalized tumor treatment and the further development of cancer therapies. The report rates the NCT Heidelberg as a center for precision oncology with a nationwide catchment area. At the NCT Heidelberg, 30 tumor conferences are held every week. These interdisciplinary expert panels define individual treatment plans for over 9,500 patients each year. In addition, the NCT Heidelberg has an extensive range of therapy-accompanying counseling services and cooperations with self-help groups that support patients and their relatives.
Florine Heine, Quality Manager at the NCT Heidelberg, and Antje Brockschmidt, Head of the NCT Cancer Registry, and their team are responsible for quality assurance. Florine Heine says: "As a certified Oncology Center, we have to prove annually that we meet the professional criteria for the treatment of tumor diseases. For patients, the certification of a center offers important information when searching for a suitable clinic to treat their cancer."
Depending on their equipment, specialization and networking, there are three types of centers:
- Organ cancer centers specialize in one type of tumor.
- Oncological centers are specialized in several tumor types and specialties
- Oncological centers of excellence are very extensively qualified and also conduct cancer research in particular.
Dirk Jäger, Head of the Oncology Center, Managing Director at the NCT Heidelberg and Head of Medical Oncology at the UKHD, says: "The renewed certification proves the joint effort of all our staff for the benefit of the patients. The Oncology Center gains its performance from the networking of many departments and clinics on the Heidelberg campus as well as a large number of regional partners."
An example of the performance of an organ cancer center is the UKHD Breast Cancer Center, which was certified for the first time in 2003 and is headed by Stefanie Buchen. It is one of the largest in Germany and is a cooperation between the Section for Gynecological Oncology at the NCT Heidelberg and the coordinating Section for Senology at the UKHD. The university orientation of the Breast Cancer Center ensures optimal patient care. Without exception, the experienced and specialized cooperation partners work together in an interdisciplinary manner in order to create an individual and tailor-made therapy concept for each patient. Markus Wallwiener, Acting Medical Director of the University Women's Hospital, says: "The close cooperation as well as the connection to the German Cancer Research Center offer patients the best possible therapy concepts and access to the latest scientific findings."
Stefan Fröhling, Managing Director at the NCT Heidelberg and Head of Translational Medical Oncology at the DKFZ, says: "The NCT Heidelberg sees it as its mission to be a central and highly competent contact point for cancer patients. The renewed certification as an Oncology Center proves that we live up to this claim and treat and support our patients according to the latest state of knowledge."
Structure of the Oncology Center Heidelberg
Director: Prof. Dr. Dirk Jäger
Coordinator: Dr. Paula Klug
Quality Manager: Florine Heine
Breast Cancer Center (certified since 2003):
Director: Dr. Stefanie Buchen
Coordinator: Dr. Thomas Deutsch
Gynecological Cancer Center (certified since 2016)
Director: Prof. Dr. Markus Wallwiener
Coordinator: Dr. Fabian Riedel
Colorectal Cancer Center (certified since 2021):
Director: Prof. Dr. Martin Schneider
Coordinators: Dr. Clemens Franz (Surgery), PD Dr. Bruno Köhler (Medical Oncology)
Skin Cancer Center (certified since 2009):
Director: Prof. Dr. Jessica Hassel
Coordinator: Dr. Christian Menzer
Pediatric Oncology Center (certified since 2019)
Director: Prof. Dr. Andreas Kulozik
Coordinator: Dr. Sebastian Stark
Head and Neck Tumor Center (certified since 2019):
Head: Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Peter K. Plinkert
Coordinator: Prof. Dr. Dr. Christian Freudlsperger
Lung Cancer Center (certified since 2009) Thorax Clinic:
Head: Dr. Helge Bischoff
Coordinator: PD Dr. Martin Eichhorn
Prostate Cancer Center (transit: transitional stage to certification):
Head: Prof. Dr. Markus Hohenfellner
Coordinators: Dr. Carine Pecqueux Gasch (Urology), PD Dr. Stefan Körber (Radiation Oncology), Dr. Stefanie Zschäbitz (Medical Oncology)
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Press contact:
Dr. Martin Staiger
National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT) Heidelberg Communication and events In Neuenheimer Feld 460
69120 Heidelberg
Phone: +49 6221 42-1755
Email: martin.staiger@nct-heidelberg.de
www.nct-heidelberg.de
Dr. Sibylle Kohlstädt
German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ)
Strategic Communication and Public Relations Im Neuenheimer Feld 280
69120 Heidelberg
Tel.: +49 6221 42-2843
E-mail: s.kohlstaedt@dkfz.de
www.dkfz.de
Doris Rübsam-Brodkorb
Heidelberg University Hospital and Medical Faculty of the University of Heidelberg Press and Public Relations Im Neuenheimer Feld 672
69120 Heidelberg
Tel.: +49 6221 56-5052
E-mail: doris.ruebsam-brodkorb@med.uni-heidelberg.de
www.klinikum.uni-heidelberg.de
National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT) Heidelberg
The National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT) Heidelberg is a joint institution of the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), the Heidelberg University Hospital (UKHD), the Medical Faculty of the University of Heidelberg and the German Cancer Aid. The aim of the NCT is to transfer promising approaches from cancer research to the clinic as quickly as possible and thus to benefit the patients. This applies to diagnosis as well as treatment, follow-up care or prevention. The tumor outpatient clinic is the heart of the NCT. Here, the patients benefit from an individual therapy plan drawn up by interdisciplinary panels of experts, the so-called tumor boards. Participation in clinical studies opens up access to innovative therapies. The NCT is thus a trend-setting platform for transferring new research results from the laboratory to the clinic. The NCT cooperates with self-help groups and supports them in their work. The NCT Heidelberg has had a partner location in Dresden since 2015. The Hopp Children's Cancer Center (KiTZ) was founded in Heidelberg in 2017. The pediatric oncologists at the KiTZ work together with the NCT Heidelberg in joint structures.
German Cancer Research Center
The German Cancer Research Center (Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum, DKFZ) with its more than 3,000 employees is the largest biomedical research institution in Germany. More than 1,300 scientists at the DKFZ investigate how cancer develops, identify cancer risk factors and search for new strategies to prevent people from developing cancer. They are developing new methods to diagnose tumors more precisely and treat cancer patients more successfully. The DKFZ's Cancer Information Service (KID) provides patients, interested citizens and experts with individual answers to all questions on cancer.
Jointly with partners from the university hospitals, the DKFZ operates the National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT) in Heidelberg and Dresden, and the Hopp Children's Tumour Center KiTZ in Heidelberg. In the German Consortium for Translational Cancer Research (DKTK), one of the six German Centers for Health Research, the DKFZ maintains translational centers at seven university partner locations. NCT and DKTK sites combine excellent universtity medicine with the high-profile research of the DKFZ. They contribute to the endeavor of transferring promising approaches from cancer research to the clinic and thus improving the chances of cancer patients.
The DKFZ is 90 percent financed by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research and 10 percent by the state of Baden-Württemberg. The DKFZ is a member of the Helmholtz Association of German Research Centers.
Heidelberg University Hospital (UKHD)
Heidelberg University Hospital (UKHD) is one of the most important medical centers in Germany; Heidelberg University's Medical Faculty is one of Europe's most prestigious biomedical research facilities. Their shared objective is the development of innovative diagnostics and treatments and their prompt implementation for the benefit of the patient. The hospital and faculty employ approximately 13,000 individuals and are involved in training and qualification. Every year approximately 65,000 patients are treated as inpatients and 56,000 as day patients in more than 50 specialized clinical departments with around 2,000 beds, with more than 1 million patients being treated as outpatients. Together with the German Cancer Research Center and German Cancer Aid, the Heidelberg University Hospital established The National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT) Heidelberg as the leading oncology center of excellence in Germany. The Heidelberg Curriculum Medicinale (HeiCuMed) is at the forefront of medical training in Germany. At present 3,700 aspiring physicians and doctors are studying in Heidelberg.