International HDR Brachytherapy Meeting 18-20 February 2011, Pattaya, Thailand

Welcome Speech

Dr. Edgar Löffler

CEO IBt Bebig, Berlin, Germany



Dear brachytherapy friends,

I am very pleased and excited to welcome you to the international HDR brachytherapy meeting, organized by IBt Bebig, in Pattaya, Thailand. The main motivation for coming together in Asia is the health care situation and low income in developing countries. Worldwide, the burden of cancer is set to increase, driven primarily by the growth and ageing of the global population. More than 70% of all cancer deaths occur in low and middle income countries. While in high income countries, 50-60% of all cancer patients receive radiotherapy as part of their treatment, in low income countries, significantly fewer patients have access to radiation therapy. It is time that will have to rethink our view for these countries. In the near future, degenerative deceases such as diabetics or cancer will play more important role than infectious deceases. Therefore, we have to prepare ourselves that much more patients will have access to an adequate cancer treatment. We assume that radiotherapy will play a key role in the future in cancer care in the low and middle income countries. Within radiotherapy by nature brachytherapy allows a tailored radiation dose to be delivered very precisely to the target area, while minimizing unwanted exposure of the surrounding healthy tissues and organs. As a pressure on healthcare resources intensifies, the treatment has to become more and more cost efficient. With brachytherapy the treatment can be performed in less time and as outpatient-based treatment. These are effective ways to reduce costs and provide more efficient use of resources. Additionally, brachytherapy involves lower overall infrastructure costs than newer forms of radiotherapy, such as IMRT or proton therapy, and provides the opportunity to maximize already existing resources in a radiotherapy department. Therefore, the role of brachytherapy will increase in these low income and developing countries. The first use of brachytherapy goes more than 100 years back. Compared to the beginning of brachytherapy, the treatment today is very sophisticated. It utilizes a combination of state-of-the-art imaging, computer-based planning and treatment delivery technologies. This way an optimal radiotherapy can be achieved. We all know, brachytherapy has pushed innovations in radiotherapy. Advanced computerized treatment planning...


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