- by croatiaweek
- April 2, 2026
-
in
News
(Photo: KBC Rijeka)
Doctors at Clinical Hospital Centre Rijeka (KBC Rijeka) have successfully treated severe complications from cancer radiotherapy using hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) – a breakthrough believed to be the first of its kind in the world.
The innovative treatment was used on a patient suffering from bile duct cancer who developed serious complications following stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT), a highly precise radiation technique used to treat tumours.
According to specialists at the hospital’s oncology clinic, the patient developed a large ulcer in the descending duodenum about 18 months after receiving SBRT treatment for liver metastases at another institution.
The condition did not respond to conventional medication and led to severe abdominal pain, persistent nausea and significant weight loss of around 15 kilograms, dramatically affecting the patient’s quality of life and ability to continue cancer therapy.
Doctors decided to try hyperbaric oxygen therapy, a treatment which involves breathing pure oxygen in a pressurised chamber, traditionally used to help heal difficult wounds and certain radiation injuries.
Professor Ivana Mikolašević, head of the oncology clinic, said the results were remarkable.
“After the therapy, the patient no longer experiences pain or nausea, has gained significant weight, and follow-up gastroscopy shows a clear regression of the duodenal ulcer,” she explained.
While some studies suggest HBOT may help treat complications from conventional radiotherapy affecting the digestive system, doctors say there are currently no published data showing its effectiveness in treating complications caused by stereotactic radiotherapy in the abdomen and pelvis. The Rijeka case is therefore believed to be the first successful application of this method worldwide, KBC Rijeka said.
(Photo: KBC Rijeka)
SBRT is increasingly used to treat primary and metastatic tumours in the liver, pancreas, adrenal glands and abdominal lymph nodes because it delivers highly targeted, high-dose radiation while minimising damage to surrounding healthy tissue.
However, with cancer patients living longer, managing the late side effects of treatment has become an increasingly important aspect of care.
Doctors say the patient began improving after just three days of therapy, with pain subsiding and appetite returning within the first week.
The hospital’s hyperbaric medicine department, currently the only centre in Croatia fully equipped to treat critically ill patients with HBOT, administers treatment cycles of between 20 and 60 sessions, five days per week.
The employees of the Center for Underwater and Hyperbaric Medicine of the Rijeka Clinical Hospital Center, led by specialist Mario Franolić, MD, together with the Director of the Rijeka Clinical Hospital Center, Assoc. Prof. Prim. Alemka Brnčić-Fischer, MD, PhD, the Head of the Clinic for Tumors of the Rijeka Clinical Hospital Center, Assoc. Prof. Ivana Mikolašević, MD, PhD, the Head of the Polyclinic and Day Hospital of the Clinic for Tumors of the Rijeka Clinical Hospital Center, Jasna Marušić, MD, the specialist in internal oncology Sara Matulić Čubranić, MD, and the Head Nurse of the Clinic for Tumors of the Rijeka Clinical Hospital Center, Blanka Josipović, mag. med. techn. (Photo: KBC Rijeka)
Following the success of the first case, a second patient with similar complications is already undergoing the same treatment.
Officials say the breakthrough highlights the growing role of multidisciplinary collaboration at KBC Rijeka, which continues to introduce advanced oncology treatments and position itself among leading regional cancer centres.
