Why patients from all over the world choose Turkish medicine: popular destinations and innovations

European hospitals recognize Turkey as a new partner in the field of health care and a center of medical tourism. According to the Medical Tourism Index, about 700,000 patients choose Turkish hospitals for their medical treatment every year.

Advantages of Turkish clinics

The reason for the popularity of Turkish clinics among foreign patients is high-quality and affordable medicine. There are more than 1200 hospitals in the country, most of which meet the requirements of the highest category.

Some of the highest priorities include:

• Availability of JCI-accredited clinics: According to the International Journal of Medical Tourism, 33 clinics in Turkey are Joint Commission International certified, confirming the highest level of equipment, doctors’ qualifications and quality of service (for comparison, there are only 10 accredited hospitals in Israel and 9 in South Korea)
• Good geographical location: Being at the junction of Europe and Asia, Turkey is a crossroads center where most countries can be reached without interchanges.
• Affordable cost of treatment: In Turkey, the price for medical services is 30-40% lower than in Europe and the USA, while the quality remains at the proper level. Local clinics offer comprehensive treatment programs and favorable price offers
• The highest level of service: Foreign patients are provided with a shuttle service, accommodation for accompanying persons at the time of treatment, a 24-hour interpreter and comfortable rooms

Highly qualified world specialists are accepted in clinics in Turkey

Leading hospitals have a staff of experienced specialists who have performed thousands of operations and complicated cases. All Turkish doctors have professional liability insurance. Activities related to health tourism are strictly controlled by the Turkish Ministry of Health in accordance with the law.

Many top doctors have internship experience in the best clinics in Europe, and specialists in leading areas such as oncology, orthopedics, urology and epileptology are known for their professionalism far beyond the country’s borders. They act as experts, consulting colleagues from other regions.

Treatment protocols and drug availability

Turkish doctors take a personalized approach, tailoring treatment plans to the specific characteristics of the patient, while using international and European protocols.

In CIS countries it is not always possible to find the right drug, while Turkey has a much larger number of registered drugs in its arsenal. For cancer patients, the list of suitable drugs includes more than 70 types of targeted and immune therapies.

Innovations introduced in popular destinations

Oncology

Oncology opens the ranking of destinations among foreign patients. Medical tourists most often choose Turkey for treatment:

• Tumors of the brain and spinal cord
• Breast cancer
• Gastrointestinal and pulmonary neoplasms

Doctors in Turkish clinics provide treatment according to the modern NCCN protocols and individually tailor the regimen, taking into account the type of tumor and its size, as well as the presence of metastases.

Leading cancer hospitals have bone marrow donor bases so that patients can be operated on as soon as possible. The best hematologists in Turkey have more than 20 years of experience and 1000 bone marrow transplants to their credit.

Specialists from the Scientific Institute of Oncology Research have developed the world’s first treatment method representing a synthesis of vaccination and chemotherapy. The head of the laboratory, Professor Hakan Akbulut, is confident that their new development will turn the view of cancer treatment upside down. In this method, chemotherapy is delivered directly inside the tumor, thus avoiding the side effects of drugs on the body.

Innovative methods in oncology include CTC (circulating tumor cells) liquid biopsy.CTC (circulating tumor cells) biopsy is used to detect cancer cells or tumor DNA fragments circulating in the blood.

The most advanced equipment meeting international standards is used in anti-tumor therapy in Turkish clinics. In radiosurgery, leading oncologists use Gamma Knife and CyberKnife units to deliver high doses of radiation to the tumor site as accurately as possible in a single application.

Advanced hospitals have the latest generation of linear gas pedals VersaHD и TrueBeam STXThe latest generation VersaHD and TrueBeam STX linear accelerators are used for radiation therapy and can remotely direct the beam to the tumor, protecting healthy tissue.

Orthopedics

Orthopedics is another leading area among foreign patients coming to Turkey for treatment. Top clinics have earned a reputation as some of the world’s best centers thanks to the professionalism of doctors and advanced technologies.

The most sought after for musculoskeletal treatment are:

Joint treatment and endoprosthetics: Innovations allow for customized prostheses that are precisely calculated in a 3D modeling program prior to surgery, significantly reducing surgical time and recovery time

Spine surgery: The use of a state-of-the-art robotic system Cirq allows the instrument to be guided to the surgical site with millimeter accuracy. To do this, the doctor uploads a three-dimensional image into the Cirq and gives instructions on where to place the screws. The robot calculates the optimal parameters of the future hole and guides the control arm to the appropriate position so that it cannot be moved. This allows the orthopaedic surgeon to concentrate directly on the drilling and screw insertion process

Sports and pediatric orthopedics: Turkish clinics have introduced the latest Magec Rod technologywhich makes it possible to avoid repeated operations in young patients. This rod system can be shortened or lengthened using a control panel based on magnetic technology. Children with scoliosis can now be treated in less than three years, whereas previously it could take up to 10 years to change the position of the vertebrae

Urology

Today, treatment of prostate adenoma and other urological diseases in leading Turkish clinics is a high-quality and affordable alternative to similar treatment in expensive European countries such as Switzerland and Germany.

Internationally renowned urologists working in leading hospitals in Turkey perform several thousand operations with the Da Vinci Robot every year. The success rate of such robotic surgeries is one of the highest in the world practice.

Erectile dysfunction is a urological pathology worthy of increased attention. The cause of disorders in the sexual sphere is, among other things, stress, which in the modern world cannot be avoided. According to the World Health Organization, 2 out of 10 men over 40 suffer from sexual impotence.

Clinics specializing in the elimination of erectile dysfunction use innovative technologies in both medical and surgical treatment. Leading urologists from Turkey use phalloprosthetics to correct congenital or acquired penile defects, which is one of the most advanced in the world today.

State-of-the-art implants do not alter genital sensitivity and ejaculation. The materials from which they are made are biocompatible, so the risk of rejection by the body is minimal. Phalloprosthesis in Istanbul is the gold standard for the treatment of patients who do not respond to drug therapy.

Epileptology

According to the WHO, the number of new cases of epilepsy is constantly increasing, amounting to approximately 50 million people worldwide per year. Turkish health care, taking into account this feature, creates an opportunity to train more subspecialists in order not to create queues among patients.

The treatment of complex neurological diseases, especially epilepsy, requires an individualized approach, a thorough determination of the causes and the choice of the most effective help. The qualification of Turkish epileptologists allows them to take on the most difficult cases, accompanied by frequent convulsive seizures or epistatus.

Innovative treatments for epilepsy include vagal и deep brain stimulation (DBS).. The idea is to place electrodes in the neck area on the vagus nerve (in the case of vagal stimulation) and directly in the epileptogenic zones (DBS) to regulate neuroactivity.

Leading Turkish hospitals use an integrative therapeutic approach involving teamwork. The treatment plan is developed individually for each patient by a panel of accredited epileptologists, neurologists, neurosurgeons, nutritionists and psychologists. It is important not only to prescribe antiepileptic treatment, but also to adjust lifestyle by removing trigger factors.

Organ transplantation

Liver transplantation is an effective and often the only radical method of treatment for patients with severe forms of hepatitis and cirrhosis. The organ is transplanted from a living donor, so the operation has a high level of complexity.

Turkey ranks second after the USA in the number of liver transplants performed each year. The results are among the highest in the world: according to the World Health Organization, the one-year survival rate after transplantation is 95-98%.

An important feature of Turkish transplantology is the use of a spouse, relative or close friend as a donor. This greatly speeds up the transplant process by eliminating the need to wait for a suitable donor from the bank.

Doctors performing complex transplants have many years of experience, knowledge and are members of the International Associations of Surgeons and Transplantologists. Every year they perform about 5 thousand operations, a significant part of which is allocated to patients coming from other countries.

Artificial intelligence in Turkish medicine

The application of artificial intelligence in medical practice opens new horizons for scientific breakthroughs. Researchers in Turkey, together with IT specialists, are developing programs to improve the quality of life of patients and speed up treatment and rehabilitation processes.

Turkish Professor Ali Ertürk, head of the Institute of Tissue Engineering, has devoted several years to working on “transparent imaging” technology to fight cancer. The technology can make not only cells and tissues, but entire organisms transparent. Transparent imaging helps detect even the smallest tumors.

By combining this method with artificial intelligence, it is possible to conduct research on cancer and Alzheimer’s disease in just a few hours, whereas previously such processes took years.

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