Radiation oncology A blend of cuttingedge, high-tech medicine and a great deal of humanity

Professor Matzinger is Medical Director Radiation Oncology for the Swiss Medical Network and Head of Radiation Oncology at the Clinique de Genolier and the Centre d’Oncologie des Eaux-Vives in Geneva. He is also Vice President of the Swiss Society for Radiation Oncology.

Can you describe radiation oncology in simple terms?
Radiation oncology is one of the three cancer treatment paths. Tumours can be treated through surgery, through chemotherapy with strong drugs, or through radiation. Radiation oncology is the use of X-rays for therapeutic applications. Almost all solid tumour types, with the exception of blood cancer (leukaemia), can be irradiated when the illness is at a certain stage. The types of cancer most commonly treated with radiotherapy are breast, prostate and lung cancers, head and neck cancers, and gastrointestinal cancers.

What are the latest developments in radiation oncology?
On a technical level, radiotherapy has become very precise over the past few years. Stereotactic radiotherapy, also known as radiosurgery, allows doctors to irradiate tumours very accurately without damaging the surrounding tissue. As such, a dose that would previously have taken ten weeks to administer can now be given in no more than five sessions.

The Clinique de Genolier welcomes a lot of international patients. Why do they come to you?
Our clinic offers high-tech equipment, specialist expertise and absolute discretion. We provide state-of-the-art radiotherapy and discuss every single treatment plan together, creating a vast pool of specialist knowledge. I myself spent several years with the European Organisation of Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) in Brussels, where I headed up the Gastro-Intestinal Working Party. I then moved to Lausanne University Hospital, where I specialised in lung, head and neck cancers. I am now part of the Clinique de Genolier, which offers a broad range of treatments for cancers of all kinds.

Discretion is very important at the Clinique de Genolier. How do you organise treatment for international guests?
The identities of the clinic’s patients are never publicised, even if they are high-level VIPs like heads of state or royalty. Access to the clinic – or certain areas of it – can even be completely shielded from the public. Patients often arrive by helicopter and stay in a private suite. This level of discretion is highly valued by patients.

What special patient requests do you accommodate?
International guests often have their own teams of doctors who look after them at home. At our clinic, such teams can be included in the treatment process. The patient’s treatment is discussed jointly and carried out in conjunction with the clinic’s own specialists. This service is part of our clinic’s fundamental philosophy. We have no huge ego stating that we are the best. We are happy to engage in open discussion and listen to the views of doctors from outside the clinic who have spent longer caring for the patient.

How do you manage follow-up care for international patients?
There are a number of options for this. Some patients return to Switzerland on a regular basis for follow-up examinations. This is driven by the relationship of trust established during the initial treatment. Other patients don’t have the time to travel so frequently. In such cases, test results and images from follow-up monitoring are shared digitally and discussed with doctors in the patient’s home country.

In which areas of radiation oncology is Switzerland a leader compared with other countries?
Some of our European colleagues are left astounded by the machines used in Swiss hospitals. Our extensive financial resources enable us to bring the latest high-tech equipment to Switzerland. Two of the newest super machines that we are already using for the benefit of our patients are the Tomotherapy Radixact and CyberKnife systems.

How do these new radiotherapy machines work and what is so revolutionary about them?
The tomotherapy machine works like a CT scanner, creating a three-dimensional image of the tumour and allowing the treatment area to be localised much more precisely. Doctors can thus aim a higher dose at the tumour and also better protect the healthy tissue. The CyberKnife system is robot-controlled and can destroy tumours from outside the patient’s body to an accuracy of less than one millimetre. Both machines even adapt to movement caused by the patient’s breathing, making them hugely user-friendly and safe.

Where is the biggest potential for Switzerland as regards future cancer treatment?
The intensive, interdisciplinary collaboration between medical specialists results in an enormous pool of specialist knowledge and a very high level of medical quality assurance. Regular and substantial investment means that Switzerland’s radiotherapy machines are absolutely state of the art. The highly personalised care is also every bit as important as the technology platform. My aim is to provide patients with very comforting care during this difficult period of their life in a kind of boutique hotel environment. The benefits of treatment in Switzerland are the combination of cutting-edge technology, highly qualified specialists, personalised care and absolute discretion.

Europe’s leading training facility for radiation oncologists is being built at the Clinique de Genolier. The Swiss Medical Network, one of the two largest groups of private hospitals in Switzerland, is opening the centre in partnership with a supplier of radiotherapy equipment and a supplier of radiotherapy software. Doctors, physicists and engineers will work together to drive forward advances in cancer treatment.