Prof. Daniel M. Aebersold

The Universitätsklinik für Radio-Onkologie (Department of Radiation Oncology) at Inselspital is one of the leading providers of radiotherapy in Switzerland. Providing our patients with individual and thoughtful care is of prime importance to us. The clinic is committed to the highest standards of quality in its work. The Department of Radiation Oncology works according to strict quality guidelines and has been ISO-certified since 2013. It is a partner of the tumour centre, the Comprehensive Cancer Center. The Comprehensive Cancer Center coordinates the cooperation of highly qualified experts from all disciplines of the organ centres and ensures holistic care and treatment for patients in all stages of cancer.

The University Hospital offers a very wide range of modern radiotherapeutic procedures and highly specialised services (stereotactic radiosurgery, interstitial brachytherapy, online adaptive radiotherapy, hyperthermia). In individual focus areas, such as brachytherapy and stereotactic radiotherapy, we are international leaders and a recognised partner in oncological care.

At the Centre for Brachytherapy, a dedicated and specialised team offers all forms of brachytherapy, including intraoperative radiotherapy (IORT). In brachytherapy, a tiny source of radiation is placed directly into the tumour, allowing the surrounding tissue to be protected as much as possible. The clinic can offer our patients this additional therapy option thanks to its experience and expertise,
especially in the case of interstitial partial breast irradiation for breast cancer.

At the Centre for Stereotactic Radiotherapy, the stereotactic team treats tumours with the latest technologies and with the highest precision. Three state-of-the-art treatment systems are available – two LINAC-based Truebeam systems and the CyberKnife, a dedicated stereotactic device. Each system allows the patient’s position to be corrected in six spatial directions and provides options for breath triggering when irradiating moving organs. The Cyberknife also offers the possibility of real-time tumour tracking for the treatment of various lung and liver tumours.

With Ethos, the Department of Radiation Oncology is focusing on AI-assisted adaptive radiotherapy and thus taking another step towards patient-centred, personalised healthcare. Ethos features a Varian Adaptive Intelligence™ solution that combines artificial intelligence (AI) with adaptive therapy. A CT is integrated into the Ethos linear accelerator, which produces images of the size and position of the tumour and the surrounding organs while the patient is lying on the radiation table. Using artificial intelligence, the software calculates a daily radiation plan based on the timely images. The doctors and specialists in medical physics can thus react to momentary changes during treatment. Patients benefit from radiation therapy that has even greater precision.

The Department of Radio-Oncology has been using hyperthermia as a combination therapy with radiation since 2022. In hyperthermia (Greek for overheating), cancer cells are warmed to a temperature of 39-43 °C. Cancer cells are more sensitive to heat than healthy cells. And it is precisely this property that the hyperthermia procedure uses to promote the death of cancer cells during radiation – without damaging healthy tissue. Hyperthermia is applied as surface or deep hyperthermia, each with two different devices according to the tumour location, and is performed immediately before or after a radiation session.

In addition to providing high quality service, we run extensive research programmes in clinical research, technology development, medical physics and radiobiology. Through education and training programmes for all professional groups involved (doctors, medical physicists, radiology specialists, nursing staff), we are able to continuously strengthen our know-how and make an active contribution to high-quality care and the further development of radiation oncology.

Together with our alliance partners, we operate a clinical network that is unique in Switzerland and thus enable a comprehensive range of university radiotherapy with high case numbers.