Living with a Brain Tumor: Psychooncology, Coaching, Nutrition

Living with a brain tumor means more than just medical treatment. It means facing new challenges every day – physically, emotionally, and mentally. Therefore, at the Center for Neuro-Oncological Neurosurgery at Beta Klinik Bonn, we accompany you through a brain tumor disease not only medically in the form of non-operative treatment methods and brain tumor surgeries, but holistically.

Our holistic care concept includes: individual psychooncological counseling, solution-oriented coaching, targeted nutritional advice, as well as neurocognitive testing and training. Our goal is to strengthen your quality of life – in every phase of the illness.

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Prof. Dr. med. Marion Rapp ist Neurochirurgin.

Prof. Dr. med. Marion Rapp

Specialist in Neurosurgery

Joseph-Schumpeter-Allee 15
53227 Bonn

Vita Prof. Dr. med. Marion Rapp

Prof. Dr. med. Michael Sabel

Specialist in Neurosurgery

Joseph-Schumpeter-Allee 15
53227 Bonn

Vita Prof. Dr. med. Michael Sabel

Contents

Psychooncological Counseling – Mental Strength in Difficult Times

A brain tumor diagnosis is a profound turning point – for those affected and their relatives. Fear, grief, overwhelm, and uncertainty are often part of everyday life. This is where psychooncology comes in: Psychooncology is specialized in helping cancer patients and their relatives cope with the emotional, psychological, and social challenges of the illness.

The Center for Neuro-Oncological Neurosurgery at Beta Klinik Bonn offers you this important service. Our experienced psychooncologist Prof. Dr. Marion Rapp and the neuro-oncology specialist trained as a coach, Prof. Dr. med. Michael Sabel, accompany you during brain tumor therapy with empathy, expertise, and years of experience. Their primary goal is to enable the highest possible quality of life for patients despite the intense burden.

  • Individual or couple conversations for emotional relief
  • Strategies for coping with the illness
  • Self-care and stabilization
  • Support in decision-making processes
  • Finding new life reorientation

“The tumor affects the body – but also life. We accompany you in both.”

– Prof. Dr. Marion Rapp, Neuro-oncologist and Psychooncologist at Beta Klinik

“We have been caring for brain tumor patients for over 20 years, from the first diagnosis to the final phases of therapy. We understand your problems and have built a coaching concept designed to help you make the best of the new life situation.”

– Prof. Dr. med Michael Sabel, Specialist in Neuro-Oncological Neurosurgery and Coach

Center for Neuro-Oncological Neurosurgery at Beta Klinik

Under the leadership of Prof. Dr. med. Marion Rapp and Prof. Dr. med. Michael Sabel, we have set new standards in the individualized treatment of brain tumors. Especially for complex tumors and tumor recurrences classified as untreatable elsewhere, we rely on innovative therapy concepts and holistic therapy that also includes psychooncological counseling and accompanies you every step of the way.

The offer is aimed at patients as well as relatives and includes three sessions of 45 minutes each, which can be conducted online and in person.

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Psychooncology at Beta Klinik: What does psychooncological counseling provide?

Psychooncology at Beta Klinik Bonn creates a protected space where you can speak openly about your feelings, fears, or even anger. Typical topics where psychooncology provides support are, for example:

  • processing the diagnosis and the changed life situation,
  • dealing with fear, uncertainty, overwhelm, or sadness,
  • communication problems (Many patients do not dare to share all their thoughts with their relatives, for fear of burdening them.),
  • developing coping strategies for everyday life and future planning despite the illness (e.g., professional perspectives, social participation).

In addition to therapeutic support in conversation, the offer also includes coaching. Here, the focus is on practically standing by your side when it comes to setting new life goals, maintaining or rebuilding everyday competencies, and activating your own strength.

We are here for you: The psychooncological counseling and coaching at Beta Klinik help you live with the brain tumor without the illness dictating your entire life. You feel understood and professionally accompanied – an important basis for gaining trust and finding new courage for life.

Learn more about brain tumor treatment

Nutritional Advice and Nutrition for Brain Tumors

An adapted diet can effectively complement brain tumor therapy. Our specialist nutritional advice for brain tumors is tailored to the individual situation, symptoms, and therapy burdens.

A brain tumor disease and its therapy can influence metabolism: some affected individuals lose weight due to loss of appetite and treatments, while others tend to gain weight, e.g., due to cortisone therapy. Therefore, the right nutrition for brain tumors aims to optimally support the body. A balanced, needs-based diet helps strengthen the immune system, maintain muscle strength, and recover better from surgery, radiation, or chemotherapy.

Our nutritional advice for brain tumor diseases at Beta Klinik works with you to develop an individual nutrition plan. We consider your personal preferences, any intolerances, as well as the current medical situation. Important in nutrition with a brain tumor is also to targetedly address therapy side effects – such as nausea, taste changes, or digestive problems – and find suitable solutions so that you still consume sufficient nutrients and calories.

Complementary Medicine Approaches at the Center for Neuro-Oncological Neurosurgery at Beta Klinik Bonn

In our center, we pursue an integrative, evidence-based approach to complementary medicine. This means: All procedures used – from medications to mind-body techniques to supportive measures – are backed by clinical studies or robust preclinical data. Complementary medicine supplements standard therapies like surgery, radiation, or chemotherapy but does not replace them. Every measure has a clear goal: to support tumor control, alleviate side effects, or improve the quality of life of our patients.

A key difference lies in the scientific basis. While we use only methods with proven efficacy, alternative medicine is often based on insufficient evidence and is not rarely propagated as a replacement for standard therapies. Our approach, however, is transparent, coordinated interdisciplinarily, and considers potential risks and interactions – for example between herbal preparations and chemotherapeutic agents. This creates safety, efficacy, and trust.

Prof. Dr. med. Marion Rapp ist Neurochirurgin.

“With us, you receive not alternative, but complementary procedures – always based on the state of science.”

– Prof. Dr. med. Marion Rapp

Mindfulness & Meditation

Studies show that mindfulness and meditation programs can reduce anxiety, depression, and therapy-related exhaustion. Positive effects have also been demonstrated for gliomas and brain metastases, including a noticeable improvement in mental stability after just a few weeks of training. Many health insurance companies cover courses like MBSR (Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction), and digital offers for everyday life are also available. Even short exercises of 10 to 20 minutes daily can help reduce stress and increase emotional quality of life.

Yoga & Tai Chi

Movement therapies like yoga, Tai Chi, and Qigong are explicitly recommended in international guidelines (SIO/ASCO). They work supportively against anxiety and depressive symptoms and can be individually adapted – from gentle movements to meditative elements. During the active therapy phase as well as in aftercare, these methods help stabilize mental balance and promote quality of life.

Movement as a Resource

Regular physical activity is considered safe and particularly effective for brain tumor patients. It increases energy, preserves muscle strength and mobility, and has a positive impact on mood and independence. Gentle activities like walking, yoga, swimming, or light strength training are recommended, adapted to individual resilience. Even short sessions can alleviate fatigue and sustainably improve well-being.

Neurocognitive Testing at the Center for Neuro-Oncological Neurosurgery

Brain tumors and their treatment can have not only physical but also mental consequences. Many patients report, for example, concentration disorders, memory gaps, or other cognitive changes. Experts therefore recommend that brain tumor patients regularly participate in neuropsychological examinations.

At Beta Klinik, neurocognitive testing is a fixed component of the care concept:

  • Even before a neurosurgical procedure or at the start of therapy, we record a baseline value of your brain performance in various areas (e.g., attention, memory, language processing).
  • Specialized test diagnostics allow for the objective identification of even subtle deficits that might escape a normal neurological examination.
  • After completion of acute treatment (e.g., after brain tumor surgery and subsequent chemo- or radiation therapy), we conduct another test to precisely capture any changes compared to the baseline finding.

Using our comprehensive testing for brain tumors, neurocognitive limitations can be detected early and addressed targetedly.

Neurocognitive Training at Beta Klinik Bonn

Based on the test results, we offer you neurocognitive training. In this therapeutic training, we work together to improve impaired brain functions or find alternative strategies to compensate for them. Important focuses are, for example:

  • improving concentration and attention,
  • memory exercises (short- and long-term memory),
  • the targeted use of aids (e.g., notebook, daily plan),
  • learning new coping strategies for everyday tasks,
  • promoting your independence in everyday life.

This training can be conducted in individual settings and is based on established neuropsychological methods. The goal is for you to get back on your feet professionally and privately as quickly as possible and stay mentally fit. If necessary, we involve specialized occupational therapists to achieve an optimal result.

Our holistic neuro-oncology offer of psychooncology, nutritional advice, as well as neurocognitive testing and training is meant to help you lead a self-determined life despite a brain tumor. We are also happy to inform you about current studies and innovations in the field of brain tumor treatment and check whether study participation is suitable for you.

If you wish for a holistic brain tumor treatment that puts you and your illness history at the center, you can conveniently submit your existing findings online via our findings upload. Our specialists will then review your documents and contact you immediately to discuss the next steps.

Schedule an appointment at our Center for Neuro-Oncological Neurosurgery at Beta Klinik

With our findings upload, you can securely and quickly transmit your documents to us. As soon as we receive them, our medical team will review your case and contact you immediately.

It’s that simple:

  1. Fill out the form: Via our online contact form, you sign the data protection declaration and cost coverage agreement.
  2. Upload documents: Upload your medical documents (e.g., doctor’s letters, surgery reports, self-assessment forms, MRI/CT images).
  3. Case review: Our medical team analyzes your documents and advises you on the best therapy options.
  4. The consultation is often useful as an online meeting in the first step, also to clarify initial open questions. If we recommend diagnostics, testing, and therapy, you will quickly receive an in-person appointment.
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Your Advantages at Beta Klinik – Private Specialist and Clinic Center in Bonn

Beta-Klinik-Aussenansicht-Bonner-Bogen

  • Comprehensive medical care under one roof
  • High specialist competence with 30 physicians from 20 disciplines
  • Modern diagnostic procedures on-site
  • Outpatient and inpatient surgery options
  • Own physiotherapy and rehab center
  • Short-term appointment scheduling