Department of Hematology, Oncology and Pulmonology - University Hospital Hamburg-Eppendorf

About the Department of Hematology, Oncology and Pulmonology at University Hospital Hamburg-Eppendorf

According to the Focus magazine, the Department of Hematology, Oncology and Pulmonology at the University Hospital Hamburg-Eppendorf is one of the best medical facilities in Germany for the treatment of colorectal cancer! 

The department provides comprehensive diagnosis and highly effective treatment of solid tumors, benign and malignant blood diseases, and pathologies of the lungs and other respiratory organs. The department's specialists have unique expertise in the treatment of leukemia, lymphomas, germ cell tumors, gastrointestinal malignancies, lung cancer, bone and soft tissue sarcomas, and head and neck tumors. The pulmonary team focuses on patients with cystic fibrosis, interstitial lung disease, and pulmonary hypertension. The specialists have well-equipped endoscopic rooms for diagnosis and treatment. The department's medical team works closely with surgeons, radiologists, radiation therapists, urologists, gynecologists, otolaryngologists, and physicians of other specialties. The healthcare facility holds weekly interdisciplinary tumor boards, where clinical cases are discussed individually and optimal treatment regimens are developed for each patient. The department is certified in accordance with the standards of the German Cancer Society (DKG) and the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO). More than 2,800 inpatients are treated here each year, and nearly 7,000 more patients are cared for on an outpatient basis. The department is headed by Prof. Dr. med. Carsten Bokemeyer.

Patients with solid malignant tumors, leukemia, and lymphomas have access to a full range of modern treatment methods with proven effectiveness: chemotherapy, targeted therapy, antibody therapy, and immunotherapy. Patients with complex cases of hematopoietic cancers are offered a bone marrow transplant procedure, which is performed in a specially equipped unit under absolutely sterile conditions. The most popular treatment method is chemotherapy. The department performs more than 15,000 courses of chemotherapy treatment annually, most of them on an outpatient basis. The therapeutic offer of the medical facility is completed by palliative care for patients with terminal stages of oncology. This treatment is not curative, but aims to alleviate symptoms and improve the quality of life of cancer patients. Great importance is also attached to the psychological support of patients undergoing treatment in the department.

The department's team of hematologists also specializes in the treatment of benign diseases of the hematopoietic system. The doctors focus on patients with hemophilia, a rare hereditary blood clotting disorder that causes spontaneous and uncontrolled bleeding. Patients with hemophilia are treated in a highly specialized center certified to European standards and considered one of the best medical facilities of its kind in Germany. Treatment is based on replacement therapy with clotting factor concentrates. The treatment regimen is prescribed on an individual basis after a comprehensive diagnostic examination.

The department has a highly professional team of pulmonologists specializing in the treatment of lung and respiratory tract diseases. Doctors of this profile have extensive experience in the treatment of pulmonary hypertension, interstitial lung disease, pulmonary sarcoidosis, cystic fibrosis, severe obstructive pulmonary disease, lung cancer, and rare lung diseases. During the therapeutic process, specialists use complex drug treatment regimens, inhalation therapy, breathing exercises, oxygen therapy, and other methods. The department has a bronchoscopy unit, which offers a full range of endoscopic examinations for visual assessment of the upper and lower respiratory tract, as well as interventional therapeutic manipulations. Bronchoscopy is performed under local anesthesia (sometimes with sedation), which eliminates pain and discomfort during the procedure. On a daily basis, the pulmonologists in the department perform diagnostic bronchoscopy, bronchoalveolar lavage, dilation and stenting for airway stenosis, hemostasis for internal bleeding, removal of foreign bodies from the airways, bronchoscopic lung volume reduction, and other endoscopic procedures.

The department's main areas of clinical practice are as follows:

• Oncology
  • Diagnostics and treatment of solid malignant tumors
    • Diagnostics and treatment of colon cancer
    • Diagnostics and treatment of stomach cancer
    • Diagnostics and treatment of esophageal cancer
    • Diagnostics and treatment of pancreatic cancer
    • Diagnostics and treatment of germ cell tumors
    • Diagnostics and treatment of lung cancer
    • Diagnostics and treatment of bone and soft tissue sarcomas
    • Diagnostics and treatment of head and neck malignancies
  • Diagnostics and treatment of malignant blood diseases
    • Diagnostics and treatment of leukemia
    • Diagnostics and treatment of lymphomas
• Hematology
  • Diagnostics and treatment of benign blood diseases
    • Diagnostics and treatment of hemophilia A and B
    • Diagnostics and treatment of von Willebrand disease
    • Diagnostics and treatment of rare blood diseases caused by deficiency of blood coagulation factors I, II, V, VII, X, XI, and XIII
    • Diagnostics and treatment of thrombocytopathy
• Pulmonology
  • Diagnostics and treatment of benign diseases of the respiratory system
    • Diagnostics and treatment of pulmonary hypertension
    • Diagnostics and treatment of interstitial lung disease
    • Diagnostics and treatment of pulmonary sarcoidosis
    • Diagnostics and treatment of cystic fibrosis
    • Diagnostics and treatment of severe obstructive pulmonary disease
    • Diagnostics and treatment of rare lung diseases
  • Diagnostics and treatment of malignant diseases of the respiratory system
    • Diagnostics and treatment of lung cancer
    • Diagnostics and treatment of chest wall malignant tumors
• Diagnostics and treatment of other diseases

The range of therapeutic services provided by the department includes the following:

• Conservative treatment of malignant diseases
  • Chemotherapy
  • Targeted therapy
  • Antibody therapy
  • Immunotherapy
• Bone marrow transplantation for the treatment of blood cancer
• Replacement therapy with coagulation factor concentrates for the treatment of hemophilia
• Conservative treatment of pulmonary diseases
  • Drug therapy
  • Inhalation therapy
  • Breathing exercises
  • Oxygen therapy
• Interventional treatment of pulmonary diseases
  • Bronchoalveolar lavage
  • Bronchoscopic dilation and stenting to eliminate airway stenosis
  • Bronchoscopic hemostasis to stop internal bleeding
  • Bronchoscopic removal of foreign bodies from the airways
  • Bronchoscopic lung volume reduction
• Other treatment methods