West German Cancer Center (WTZ), University Hospital Essen

aka Westdeutsches Tumorzentrum, Universitätsklinikum Essen, NCT West

One of Germany's oldest and largest cancer centres, home to the West German Proton Therapy Centre and a leading melanoma and theranostics programme.

Founded in 1967, the Westdeutsches Tumorzentrum at University Hospital Essen was among the first German Cancer Aid Oncology Centers of Excellence and became a National Center for Tumor Diseases site (NCT West, with Cologne) in 2023. It operates the West German Proton Therapy Centre Essen (WPE), Europe's largest university-based proton facility, treating many paediatric patients. The dermato-oncology group under Dirk Schadendorf has led melanoma immunotherapy and adjuvant trials, and the nuclear medicine department under Ken Herrmann is a high-volume theranostics centre for PSMA and somatostatin-receptor radioligands. Other strengths include sarcoma, uveal melanoma, stem cell transplantation and neuro-oncology.

Location

Essen, DE

Type

cancer center · Universität Duisburg-Essen

Website

www.wtz-essen.de

Newsweek 2026 oncology rank

Not in top 300 listing used

Nuclide score

#25 · 16 points (0 Newsweek + 0 NCI + 16 from 8 linked objects) · ranking

Programmes

5top

West German Proton Therapy Centre
Melanoma and dermato-oncology
Theranostics and nuclear medicine
Stem cell transplantation
NCT West

People

2top

Ken Herrmann

Chair of Nuclear Medicine, University Hospital Essen

TheranosticsPSMA radioligand therapyNuclear medicine

Nuclear medicine leader who co-led VISION and runs one of the world's largest theranostics programmes.

Wolfgang P. Fendler

Professor and Vice Chair (deputy director), Department of Nuclear Medicine, University Hospital Essen / University of Duisburg-Essen

PSMA PET response assessmentradioligand therapy trialsGerman Cancer Consortium (DKTK) translational research

A German nuclear medicine doctor at Essen who helped design a scoring system, RECIP, for reading follow-up PSMA scans in prostate cancer patients on lutetium therapy, and who co-writes the field's international imaging guidelines.