History of radiotherapy at Hannover Medical School

2025
Surface and X-ray-based tracking, Surface Guided Radiotherapy (ExacTrac Dynamic) - SGRT

2018
Interstitial brachytherapy (initially for cervical cancer, later expanded to other entities)

2015
Volume intensity modulated radiotherapy (VMAT)

2013
(virtual) CT simulation (= simulator is no longer required)

2012
Prof. Dr. Dr. Hans Christiansen (appointed by the University Medical Center Göttingen, "3rd generation of MHH") takes over the management of the clinic
Intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT)

2010
Intrabeam

2008
Department of Radiotherapy in the Medical Care Center (MVZ) of the MHH, ensuring outpatient treatment options at the MHH

2007
Image-guided radiotherapy (IGRT)
Organization of the 13th annual congress of DEGRO in Hanover

2006
Start of the clinical establishment of evidence-based curative hypofractionation/radiation with higher individual doses and at the same time fewer fractions to shorten the overall treatment time, initially for breast cancer (now the standard of care).

2002
Intraoperative X-ray radiotherapy

2001
Brachytherapy with permanent seed implantation

1997
Termination of 2-site operation and discontinuation of radiotherapy at Oststadt-KH - since then Clinical Department at the MHH always equipped with 3 linear accelerators; establishment of stereotactic one-time cerebral irradiation (first clinic in Northern Germany), later also body stereotaxy

1995
Start of radiobiological research in cooperations
Foundation of the independent scientific radiotherapeutic society "German Society for Radiooncology", radiotherapy of the MHH founding member

1993
3D-conformal irradiation

1992
Prof. Dr. Johann Karstens takes over the management of the clinic, appointed from Aachen ("2nd generation of MHH").

1989
Prof. Dr. Karlheinz Renner dies after a serious illness, initially temporary management of the Clinical Department by Dr. Adelheid Emminger

1988
Introduction of the specialist title "Specialist in Radiotherapy" and start of the corresponding further training at the MHH
End of the 1980s
Brachytherapy using the afterloading procedure

1982
The MHH Radiotherapy Department is the first and at the time only Clinical Department in Germany to receive its own CT machine - financed by a foundation - after the MHH had propagated the concept of CT-based radiation planning four years previously. Introduction of whole-body radiotherapy in the context of stem cell transplants (one of MHH's international focal points)

From 1972
The main Department moves into the current building K7 in the Hannover Medical School; a branch in the Oststadt Hospital remains for the time being. Equipment: two telecobalt devices, one circular accelerator (1973) and two linear accelerators (1980: MHH, 1982: Oststadt Hospital), therapy simulator, planning computer and conventional therapy devices.

1971
Prof. Dr. Gustav Notter accepts a call first to the University of Lund, then to the University of Gothenburg. Prof. Dr.Karlheinz Renner takes over the management of the clinic (appointed by the University of Basel, actually the "1st generation of the MHH" due to the short time of Prof. Notter's activity), radiotherapy is given its current name as the "Clinical Department of Radiotherapy and Special Oncology" (also taking into account, for example, the clinical aspects of combining radiotherapy with drug tumor therapy and a separate ward as a "bed-managing department").

1969
Spin-off of radiotherapy from the Institute of Clinical Radiology and establishment of a Clinical Department (first independent radiotherapy department at a German university hospital), first appointed director (from the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm): Prof. Dr. Gustav Notter; acquisition of therapy simulator. Prior to 1988, radiation oncology was only a specialty of the specialist in radiology, only afterwards was there a specialist in radiotherapy.

1967
First telecobalt device (due to radiation protection in the basement of Oststadt Hospital)

1965
Foundation of the MHH. Radiation therapy operations (patient care, research and teaching) initially started in the Oststadt municipal hospital (Oststadt-Krankenhaus), located around 5 km from the MHH Roderbruch site. At that time, radiotherapy was generally part of radiology. Prof. Dr. Dr. Hans-Stephan Stender headed the Institute of Clinical Radiology, therapy with conventional X-ray therapy equipment (on the upper floor of the Oststadt Hospital).