Wir überwinden Grenzen

In 2009, the Lung Cancer Center at the University Medical Center Freiburg was one of the first in Germany to be certified by the German Cancer Society / New data on prevention, screening and treatment procedures at a conference in Freiburg on 29 June

Lung cancer is still one of the most common tumor diseases in men, but it is also very difficult to treat. This is why the interdisciplinary lung cancer center was established at the University Medical Center Freiburg ten years ago and certified by the German Cancer Society. "With our well-coordinated and experienced team of specialists, we are able to offer patients individually tailored care at the highest scientific level," says Prof. Dr. Bernward Passlick, Medical Director of the Department of Thoracic Surgery at the University Medical Center Freiburg, founder of the Lung Cancer Center and one of the conference chairs of the Freiburg Thoracic Oncology Update. At the symposium on 29 June 2019, in addition to a review of the successful work of the Lung Cancer Center, new data on the success of early detection programs as well as innovative drug, surgical and radiotherapeutic treatment methods will be presented.

Lung cancer screening called for

"We urgently need to establish lung cancer screening for high-risk patients," Passlick demands. "The benefits of such screenings are now well documented for active and former heavy smokers," says Passlick. In a large US study, for example, 20 percent fewer participants who had regular lung scans died. Screening can detect precancerous lesions or small tumors, which can often be completely surgically removed before the first symptoms appear. "In the early stages of the disease, the chance of recovery is 50 to 90 percent," says Passlick.

A combination of drug therapy, radiotherapy and surgery is often necessary in the treatment of lung cancer. A multidisciplinary treatment recommendation for more than 350 newly diagnosed patients at the Lung Cancer Center of the Freiburg University Medical Center is agreed each year in a tumor board that meets twice a week. Due to the complexity of lung cancer therapy, politicians are currently discussing the introduction of minimum volumes, particularly for surgical treatment. "Minimum volumes make perfect sense and are an important value for patients in terms of quality," says Passlick.

New surgical and radiotherapy methods will also be presented at the Freiburg conference. "There are promising therapies in which the tumor is first shrunk and only then operated on. We offer such neoadjuvant therapies as part of clinical studies," says Prof. Dr. Cornelius Waller, senior physician at the Department of Internal Medicine I at the Freiburg University Medical Center, who is chairing the conference together with Prof. Passlick and Dr. Eleni Gkika, senior physician at the Department of Radiation Oncology at the Freiburg University Medical Center.

Contact: 
Prof. Dr. Bernward Passlick 
Medical Director 
Department of Thoracic Surgery 
University Medical Center Freiburg 
Phone: 0761 270-24550 
bernward.passlick@uniklinik-freiburg.de