Cancer Treatment: Which Hospitals Around the World Are the "Best"? (Post #9)

Hi! Welcome back to Spiramen Founder's Blog! This week we'll be discussing top oral and throat cancer hospitals around the world, and what makes them so renowned.

Starting off, let's discuss what we can define as "the best" hospitals. The criteria I'm using today are rankings, specialization in throat and oral cancer, breadth of treatments available, advanced treatment technology, and presence of clinical research.

First, looking at Asia:

1) Samsung Medical Center (Seoul, South Korea)

Listed #3 in global oncology by Newsweek and OncoDaily, Samsung Medical Center is cited as Asia's best cancer facility. Some reasons for its prestige include:

• multidisciplinary treatment teams

• use of forefront medical technologies

  • for example, proton therapy, robotic surgery, and HIPEC for advanced cases

• personalization in cancer treatment

  • use of genomic medicine for tailored treatment plan

• patient care

  • short wait times

  • known for low complication rates in throat cancer surgeries

• relevant research

  • focus on cancer incidences rising in Asian countries

    • like HPV-related throat cancer

  • advanced cancer prevention research

    
    

Next, the USA:

1) MD Anderson Cancer Center (Houston, TX)

The MD Anderson Center was ranked the #1 center for oncology Newsweek in 2025 and has consistently been one of the top rankers of U.S. News for the past several years. Let's look at what features make it so prestigious:

• dedicated head and neck cancer center

• multidisciplinary treatment teams

  • medical oncologists, surgeons, radiation oncologists, pathologists, and reconstructive specialists all work on a case together

  • this technique has been shown to increase survival rate

• 4,000+ head and neck cancers are treated every year

• they are pioneers of advanced medical technologies like proton therapy and robotic surgery

• they conduct many clinical trials

  • notably for HPV-related throat cancers (Read Post #5 to learn more!)

    
    

2) Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (New York, NY)

The Memorial Sloan Center has been ranked #2 worldwide for oncology and #1 for ENT by U.S News in the past few years. Some of its pros are:

• the focus on ENT and oral/throat cancers

  • team of 50+ specialists focusing solely on head and neck cancer

• multidisciplinary treatment teams

  • surgery, radiation, and target therapy specialists integrated

• leading hospital in quality-of-life trials

  • specifically, trials reducing chemotherapy doses for HPV-related throat cancers

  • experts who work in reconstruction of damaged areas

• high research output

• personalization in cancer treatment

  • using newer genomic profiling techniques to personalize treatment

3) Mayo Clinic (Rochester, MN)

Mayo Clinic is well-known around the world for its medical care. As a high school student, I often use their articles for research! Mayo has been ranked in the Top 5 in global oncology by U.S. News and Newsweek. Some features it boasts are:

• end-to-end treatment

  • Oral and Maxillofacial Oncology Clinic delivers care starting from screening all the way to rehab

• advanced diagnostics

  • for example, fusion of PET scan and MRI

• recognized for salivary gland and oral/throat cancer management

Lastly, Europe:

1) Gustave Roussy (Villejuif, France)

Gustave Roussy has been ranked #4 globally for oncology by Newsweek. Its recognition comes from:

• Europe's largest cancer center

  • 47,000 patients annually

• specialization in ENT tumors

  • focus on head and neck cancers including oral and throat cancers

• referral hub across Europe

  • advanced cases around Europe get sent here

  • known for handling rare cases

• use of latest medical technology

  • for example, robotic surgery

• international cooperation

  •  global collaboration for scientific trials

  • multilingual accommodation

  • rapid access for international patients

These 5 hospitals are recognized around the world for their excellence in cancer treatment! As cancer cases increase exponentially around the world, knowing your best treatment options is important!

Thanks for reading this week's post! See you next week!

Image Citations:

Lifeboat. “Samsung Medical Center (SMC) I Top Hospitals in South Korea,” Youtube, 2023, www.youtube.com/watch?v=gsT1vWvVEAg. Accessed 27 Feb. 2026.

Information Citations:

“World’s Best Specialized Hospitals 2025 - Oncology.” Newsweek, 2025, rankings.newsweek.com/worlds-best-specialized-hospitals-2025/oncology.

“Welcome to the North American Skull Base Society - NASBS.” NASBS, 30 Apr. 2025, www.nasbs.org. Accessed 27 Feb. 2026.

Sloan, Memorial. “Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center Ranked #1 Nationally for Ear, Nose, and Throat Care by U.S. News & World Report | Newswise.” Newswise.com, Newswise, 27 July 2021, www.newswise.com/articles/memorial-sloan-kettering-cancer-center-ranked-1-nationally-for-ear-nose-and-throat-care-by-u-s-news-world-report. Accessed 27 Feb. 2026.

“Throat Cancer Doctors, Surgeons & Other Experts | Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.” Mskcc.org, 2026, www.mskcc.org/cancer-care/types/throat/throat-cancer-doctors-surgeons-experts. Accessed 27 Feb. 2026.

Youssef Rddad. “U.S. News Releases 2025-2026 Cancer Care Center Rankings.” Oncology News Central, ONC, 29 July 2025, www.oncologynewscentral.com/oncology/us-news-releases-2025-2026-cancer-care-center-rankings.

“Head and Neck Cancer | Gustave Roussy.” Gustave Roussy, 2017, www.gustaveroussy.fr/en/head-and-neck-cancer. Accessed 27 Feb. 2026.

https://www.facebook.com/gevorg.tamamyan. “New Global List Names 2026’S Best Oncology Hospitals - OncoDaily.” Oncodaily - Oncology News, Insights, Stories, 15 Nov. 2025, oncodaily.com/industry/best-oncology-hospitals. Accessed 27 Feb. 2026.