Prof. Brigitte Mayinger

Prof. Brigitte Mayinger is a specialist in internal medicine, gastroenterology, endocrinology and metabolism, as well as in diabetology and palliative medicine. Since May 2004, she has headed the Department of Gastroenterology, Hepatology, Diabetology and Endocrinology of Medical Department II at the HELIOS Hospital, Munich West as its Chief Physician. In addition to her function as Chief Physician, Prof. Mayinger has also been the Deputy Medical Director of the HELIOS Hospital, Munich West since 2006 and, since March 2008, an adjunct professor at the University in Erlangen-Nuremberg. Prof. Mayinger completed her extensive medical training in a variety of hospitals in the USA and Germany, including the Beth Israel Hospital of the Harvard Medical School in Boston, the Central Hospital in Augsburg and the Hospital and Polyclinic of the Friedrich Alexander University of Erlangen-Nuremberg. Prof. Mayinger has become known in connection with the development of new interdisciplinary diagnostic techniques based on biomedical-physical and optical techniques for early tumor diagnosis using gastrointestinal tract endoscopy.

Here, her research focus is particularly on the endoscopic early recognition of gastroenterological tumors. In collaboration with the TU Munich and the industry, she developed a technique which presents new options in endoscopic examination for the detection of esophageal, gastric and large intestine carcinomata. In collaboration with the Fraunhofer IIS Institute of the University of Erlangen, Prof. Mayinger has also worked on image analysis techniques for the improved early detection of tumors. As a diabetologist trained by the German Diabetes Association (DDG), Prof. Mayinger also specializes in diabetology, a branch of medicine which is concerned with the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of and research into diabetic conditions. In addition, Prof. Mayinger has been trained in the field of palliative medicine. Palliative medicine is medical care in the last phase of life, which alleviates the suffering of the patient (symptom control) and which psychologically undergirds him and his family (spiritual accompaniment). Prof. Mayinger invariably keeps her specialist knowledge up to date and is a member of various scientific associations, including, for example, the Professional Association of German Internists (BDI), the German Internal Medicine Association (DGIM), the German Diabetes Association (DDG), the German Digestive and Metabolic Disorders Association (DGVS), the German Endoscopy and Imaging Techniques Association (DGE-BV) and the Senior Gastroenterologists’ Working Group (ALK).