Radioembolization (Y-90) in Turkey
Radioembolization — commonly called Y-90, or SIRT (selective internal radiation therapy) — is a form of internal radiation the U.S. National Cancer Institute describes as a way to treat liver cancer, or cancer that has spread to the liver, by threading a thin catheter into the vessel that feeds the tumor and releasing tiny radioactive beads (yttrium-90) that lodge in the tumor and give off radiation from the inside. It is used in selected patients and delivered by an interventional-radiology team, and it requires a hospital equipped for it — so availability in Turkey is hospital-specific: whether a given Istanbul or Turkey center offers it is something you must confirm directly with that named facility. OncologyIstanbul™ isn’t a hospital — we give you a free 72-hour review of your reports and the tools to verify any center yourself.
What radioembolization is
Radioembolization is a type of internal radiation therapy — the NCI also calls it intra-arterial brachytherapy — that delivers radiation to a liver tumor through its own blood supply. A thin, flexible catheter is threaded into the artery that carries blood to the liver, and tiny beads (microspheres) holding the radioactive substance yttrium-90are injected through it. The U.S. National Cancer Institute explains that the beads collect in the tumor and in the blood vessels near it, and the yttrium-90 gives off radiation — destroying the blood vessels the tumor needs to grow and killing cancer cells — while concentrating the dose at the tumor rather than aiming it from a machine outside the body. For the primary-source definition, see the NCI’s dictionary entry for radioembolization (opens in a new tab) and its liver cancer (opens in a new tab) overview.
Which cancers it’s considered for
The NCI describes radioembolization as a treatment for liver cancer and for cancer that has spread to the liver from elsewhere in the body. These are the situations where it is considered— often when a tumor cannot be removed with surgery — not a guarantee it is the best choice for any one person.
- Primary liver cancer. Cancer that starts in the liver, such as hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), particularly when surgery or a transplant is not an option.
- Cancer that has spread to the liver. Liver metastases from a cancer that began in another organ, in selected patients whose disease is focused in the liver.
- Tumors reachable through the hepatic artery. Because the beads travel through the liver’s blood supply, the approach suits tumors fed by that arterial network.
- As part of a wider plan. One option among surgery, ablation, systemic therapy and other approaches — sometimes used to control disease or bridge to further treatment.
Important context: radioembolization is used in selected patients, and it depends on your liver function, how much of the liver is involved and your overall plan. Whether it fits your case is a decision for the treating multidisciplinary team — not a marketing claim. See also the treatments & technology hub.
Availability in Turkey — the honest part
This is where a lot of medical-tourism marketing overreaches, so we won’t. Radioembolization can only be delivered at a hospital set up for it: it needs an interventional-radiology suite, a nuclear-medicine team and access to regulated yttrium-90 microspheres, plus a pre-treatment mapping angiogram to plan the dose. A center that treats liver cancer with surgery or standard radiation does notautomatically offer Y-90 radioembolization. In Turkey, availability is hospital-specific. We do not claim broad availability, and we won’t tell you a given Istanbul center offers it unless it genuinely does. If radioembolization is on the table for your case, the honest step is to confirm it directly with a specific, named facility — ask which microsphere system they use and who performs the procedure — and to check that facility’s state authorization yourself before you commit to travelling.
What it costs
There is no single price for radioembolization, and we won’t invent one. The cost is driven by the plan — the pre-treatment mapping angiogram, the yttrium-90 microspheres and the dose calculated for your tumor, the interventional-radiology procedure itself, and the imaging and hospital stay around it — and it depends entirely on your case. Any real figure has to come from the specific center as an itemized written quote. Every price we publish today is an illustrative placeholder pending verified quotes, and each figure is itemized so you can hold a real quote up against it, line by line. See the Turkey Oncology Price Index or the full cancer treatment cost in Turkey breakdown. You pay the treating center directly, only after you approve an itemized written quote — never us.
The center, verified
We don’t show you a “top Y-90 clinic” ranking or a wall of smiling doctors — those are the easiest things to fabricate, and with a procedure this specialized an unverified claim is worse than useless. Instead, if radioembolization is genuinely part of your plan, you’re pointed to a state-authorized center and shown how to verify its authorization against the Republic of Turkey Ministry of Health’s own records and, where it applies, its JCI accreditation in JCI’s public directory before you commit — and to confirm the microsphere system and the interventional-radiology team with the facility itself. Named specialist profiles appear only when a verified, consented physician is behind the name. See the full guide to cancer hospitals in Istanbul and how to check one yourself.
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Common questions
Is radioembolization (Y-90) available in Turkey?
Not everywhere, and we won't pretend otherwise. Radioembolization is a catheter procedure that needs an interventional-radiology suite, a nuclear-medicine team and regulated yttrium-90 microspheres, plus a pre-treatment mapping angiogram — so it is delivered only at hospitals set up for it, not at every center that treats cancer. Whether a specific Istanbul or Turkey center currently offers Y-90 radioembolization is something you must confirm directly with that named facility, not assume from a general 'we treat liver cancer' claim. OncologyIstanbul™ is not a hospital and does not deliver this procedure; if radioembolization is part of what your own doctors are considering, we can help you organize your reports and check any facility's state authorization, but we will never claim a treatment is available when it may not be.
How does radioembolization work, and how is it different from external radiation?
The U.S. National Cancer Institute describes radioembolization as a type of internal radiation therapy — also called intra-arterial brachytherapy — used to treat liver cancer or cancer that has spread to the liver. A thin, flexible tube (catheter) is used to inject tiny beads that hold the radioactive substance yttrium-90 into the blood vessel that carries blood to the liver. The beads collect in the tumor and in the blood vessels near it, and the yttrium-90 gives off radiation, which helps destroy the blood vessels the tumor needs to grow and kills cancer cells. Unlike standard external-beam radiation, which is aimed at the body from a machine outside it, radioembolization delivers the radiation from inside, at the tumor itself, by way of its blood supply.
Which cancers is radioembolization used for?
Per the NCI, radioembolization is used to treat liver cancer — primary cancer that starts in the liver, such as hepatocellular carcinoma — and cancer that has spread to the liver from another part of the body. It is used in selected patients, often when a tumor cannot be removed with surgery, and it is one option among several. Whether it fits any one person is decided by a treating multidisciplinary team after reviewing your imaging, pathology and liver function — it is not something to promise in advance or to assume from a diagnosis alone.
How much does radioembolization cost, and can you quote me a price?
We will not invent a number. The cost of Y-90 radioembolization is driven by the plan — the pre-treatment mapping angiogram, the yttrium-90 microspheres and the dose calculated for your tumor, the interventional-radiology procedure itself, imaging and the hospital stay around it — and it depends entirely on your case. Any real figure has to come from the specific center as an itemized written quote. Every price OncologyIstanbul™ publishes today is an illustrative placeholder pending verified quotes; see the Turkey Oncology Price Index and the cancer-treatment-cost breakdown for how we itemize. You pay the treating center directly, only after you approve an itemized quote — never us.
This page is part of the wider guide to cancer treatment in Istanbul, Turkey. When you’re ready, the free second opinion organizes your reports into a verified case file in your language, so you and your own doctor can weigh whether radioembolization even applies.
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This page is general information, not medical advice. Every cancer case is individual; whether radioembolization is appropriate, and where it is available, must be confirmed with a treating oncology team and the specific facility, and does not replace in-person examination or the judgment of your treating team.