All FAQs at a glance

Accommodation & Transport

Where can I live during the treatment?

If you have Austrian social security and your treatment costs are covered by your health insurance: depending on the distance between your place of residence and MedAustron, you might be provided with an accommodation close to MedAustron for which you only have to pay a deductible. Your Patient Care Coordinator will contact you during your initial consultation to support you in all matters regarding accommodation and transportation.
Please note: if you do not want to make use of the provided accommodation, you have to cover the total costs for your privately organized accommodation.

If you do not have Austrian social security or are paying for the therapy yourself: in cooperation with the Wiener Alpen tourism agency, MedAustron has selected a number of particularly suitable accommodation options near our center which offer special prices for our patients. These accommodations range from private rooms and hotels to apartments and guest houses in Wiener Neustadt and its surroundings, as well as Baden and Vienna. If you need help in finding the ideal accommodation for your stay, your Patient Care Coordinator will gladly assist you.

What to consider for arrival and transport?

For rides to your treatments at MedAustron, your general practitioner can issue a “Request for transportation cost assumption by a contract transport service.”  Your doctor must specify the exact type, duration and treatment location (MedAustron) of the necessary treatments. For more information, please contact your general practitioner or your health insurance company.

In addition, we work with transportation and rental car companies that offer discounted rates for our patients. If you are travelling by public transport, we will be pleased to help you with tips on planning your journey.

About ion beam therapy

What is ion beam or particle therapy?

Ion beam therapy is a form of radiation therapy used to treat cancer. Protons or carbon ions are used – both are charged, massive particles.

How are the particles generated?

Protons are obtained from hydrogen gas H2, carbon ions from carbon dioxide CO2. The physical properties of protons and carbon ions are similar, but carbon ions have a much higher, so-called “biological effectiveness”.

Is ion beam therapy suitable for every type of cancer?

Compared to conventional radiotherapy with photons, particle therapy is able to reduce the radiation exposure of the adjacent healthy tissue and almost completely spare the tissue behind the tumour. Therefore, particle therapy is an ideal treatment for localized tumours in the vicinity of radiosensitive organs. Since strongly growing tissue reacts more sensitively to radiation, proton therapy is particularly suitable for cancer in children and adolescents.

About application

How can I apply to MedAustron?

Please upload your application including CV and motivation letter in our application tool by clicking on “Apply now” in the lower area of the respective job advertisement. In the job list you can also find the position “unsolicited application”. Our application tool will guide you through the individual steps. Sending the application, normally takes only a few minutes. Due to data protection reasons, we do not accept applications by e-mail.

What documents should my application contain? In which format should I upload my application documents?

Curriculum vitae: This should include the exact duration of previous employment and training, as well as a brief description of previous activities and skills.

Letter of motivation: Why do you want to work at MedAustron and why are you the right person for this position? Let us also know what you are looking for, when you are available and your preferred number of hours per week if you are applying for a part-time position. What else would you like to tell us that is not apparent in your curriculum vitae?

Training and service certificates: If possible, please combine your references into a single, clearly arranged file.

Please prepare your application documents in the language in which the advertisement was written and upload them as a PDF file.

Who is my contact person in the recruiting process?

If you have any questions about the vacancies or your application, please contact Julie Van Ysendyck, MA on +43 664 80878 154.

Can I submit an unsolicited application?

You can upload your unsolicited application via the job posting “Unsolicited application” in our online application tool. Please state the section for which you are applying, your preferred working hours and the possible start date. If you wish, we will be happy to contact you directly as soon as we advertise a new position in your field of interest.

Can I also complete an apprenticeship at MedAustron?

We currently do not train apprentices at MedAustron.

How can I withdraw my application or delete my profile?

You can withdraw your application at any time in your profile in the respective job by clicking on “Withdraw”. In your account settings you can also request a deletion of the entire profile. You can find more information about data protection in your applicant account and on our website. If you still have any questions in this regard, please contact datenschutz@medaustron.at.

About therapy request

When can I expect a treatment decision?

After receipt of all necessary documents, you will get a prompt reply regarding the therapy decision.

Is an inpatient admission possible?

The answer is no, because MedAustron is an outpatient centre. If you need accommodation, we will be pleased to assist you.

What documentation is needed to make a treatment decision?

Please provide us with the following documents: Doctors’ letters, operative report, histology, digital imaging with related medical findings (MRT, CT, PET-CT).

How can I make a therapy request?

Please submit your therapy request via the online form on our homepage or by e-mail to patient@medaustron.at or by phone at +43 / 2622 / 26100 – 300.

Research fields

Intrafractional adaptive radiotherapy

The treatment of moving target volumes with scanned particle beams has long been an important area of research in ion beam therapy. For intrafractional adaptive radiotherapy, i.e. in case of changes during an irradiation fraction, the focus is in the field of medical image processing, four-dimensional dosimetry and special methods in radiation planning.

Interfractional adaptive radiotherapy

Interfractional adaptive radiotherapy also deals with position changes of the target volumes, where the time interval of the movement is larger, i.e. changes between the individual radiation days (fractions). Treatment adaptations are based on magnetic resonance images, which provide information on morphological changes and changes in tumour characteristics. So-called deep learning approaches are also used for evaluating and further processing the individual images.

Magnetic resonance-based particle therapy

Research in the field of magnetic resonance-based beam application or development of combining magnetic resonance imaging and ion beam therapy is an emerging topic in radiotherapy. In contrast to photon therapy, the particle beam is directly influenced by the magnetic field in ion beam therapy. Studies on the effects on dose distribution, on dosimetric measurements and finally on patient treatment are the starting point for magnetic resonance-based particle therapy.

Imaging with ion beams

MedAustron offers the possibility to investigate proton computed tomography with energies of up to 800 MeV. Such high proton energies are not used in therapy. In order to reduce distance uncertainties in the irradiation planning process, it is of essential interest to improve determining the energy output of the particles.

Energy transfer mechanisms

Currently, treatment planning in ion beam therapy is based on the product of absorbed dose in water with a biological weighting factor. However, this approach is not sufficient for a comprehensive quantitative description of biological impacts. Therefore, microdosimetric spectra are recorded by means of experimental measurements, which represent the cornerstone for further correlation with biological data.

Preclinical research

Preclinical research focuses on the investigation of molecular biological and immunological processes in the tumour and its microenvironment, which contributes significantly to the therapy resistance of the tumour. The effects of ion beam therapy on the tumour microenvironment are currently unknown and are being explored in adequate spheroid and xenograft models. In addition, it is planned to visualize and investigate radiation-induced processes in the tumour using non-invasive preclinical imaging techniques.

Questions related to the irradiation

How long does the therapy take?
The duration of a single irradiation (fraction) is depending on the size and position of the tumor. Most patients will be in the treatment room for a total of 30 minutes. However, a daily irradiation unit can take up to 60 minutes. Depending on how many fractions are necessary to apply the complete dose, the treatment may take between one and nine weeks.

Will I feel the beam?
The beam itself is invisible, odor- and noiseless and you can’t feel it. However, in some patients it can trigger a metallic taste sensation.

Will I be alone in the treatment room?
Patients are only alone in the treatment room for the actual irradiation. Medical staff – our radiation technologist (RT) – will accompany you into the irradiation room. When all preparations are completed, the RT switches to a control room outside the irradiation room. From there the room itself as well as all systems can be monitored and the RT can intervene quickly if necessary.

Do I have to be under anesthesia for the treatment?
Anesthesia is only necessary to immobilize and position small children.

How will I feel during the therapy? What side effects can I expect?
Compared to conventional radiotherapy, particle therapy is usually accompanied by significantly less side effects. Nevertheless, also this form of therapy could cause some ailments over time. In most cases, these include side effects typical for radiation therapy and are heavily dependent on the irradiated area. Common side effects include fatigue, drowsiness, localized skin changes and irritation of mucous membranes. Acute side effects typically only last a couple of weeks. In any case, please let your radiation oncologist know of any and all side effects which you might experience.

Organizational Questions

Will a cancelled irradiation session be rescheduled?

In case one of your treatment sessions has to be cancelled, a new appointment will be scheduled at the end of your planned treatment period, therefore prolonging it. When we plan your treatment, we will already take general days on which no patient treatments can take place (e.g. due to maintenance work) into account.

What are the reasons for delays during my treatment session?
Irradiation therapy, and especially particle therapy, is a highly complex technology. It necessitates many work steps and safety procedures to ensure your safety at all times. Even the slightest deviation leads to elaborate safety tests, which in turn can occasionally cause delays. Your safety and health are our top priorities, which is why the treatment will only continue if all requirements are met 100%. Therefore, we kindly ask you for your understanding in case you are affected by a delay.

Will you take my preferences into account when scheduling my irradiation sessions?
The individual treatment sessions are scheduled by our radiation technologists according to the availability of treatment rooms and times. The treatment appointments for all 3 radiation rooms must be coordinated in terms of duration and complexity in order to ensure optimized use of the therapy beam. In addition, fixed treatment appointments are required for our young patients under anesthesia. For this reason, we are unfortunately only rarely able to accommodate appointment requests.