Prof. Dr. Markus Graefen

Prof. Dr. med. Markus Graefen is a highly regarded urologist and urologic oncology specialist whose clinical and academic work centers on the modern diagnosis and treatment of prostate cancer. After studying medicine in Bonn, he completed urology training at university hospitals in Edinburgh, Düsseldorf, and Hamburg, and has been associated with the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf (UKE) since 1995, where his clinical and scientific focus has long been prostate carcinoma. A defining element of Prof. Graefen’s profile is the combination of high-volume, outcome-focused prostate cancer surgery with structured academic research. Early in his career, he received a German Research Foundation–supported fellowship and spent a year conducting research at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York, an experience that strengthened his translational approach to urologic oncology. At UKE, he went on to lead specialized prostate cancer consultations and became Head of the Prostate Cancer Outpatient Clinic, reflecting a long-standing focus on patient stratification, therapy selection, and follow-up strategies across the prostate cancer continuum. At the Martini-Klinik in Hamburg, one of Europe’s best-known prostate cancer centers, Prof. Graefen has held senior leadership roles for many years and was appointed Medical Director. In this position, he is closely involved in setting clinical standards, aligning surgical technique with measurable oncologic and functional outcomes, and translating evidence into everyday decision-making for patients with localized and advanced disease. His habilitation topic, focused on prognostic assessment of prostate carcinoma, underscores a core theme of his work: using predictive evaluation to personalize treatment intensity, timing, and the choice of local versus multimodal strategies. Prof. Graefen is also a prolific academic contributor, with numerous publications, book chapters, and research awards primarily in prostate cancer. His work spans both operative innovation and the systematic evaluation of outcomes, including nerve-sparing radical prostatectomy in open and robotic-assisted techniques, as well as prostate brachytherapy using afterloading and seed methods. In parallel, he has helped shape clinical standards beyond his institution, including authorship contributions to Germany’s S3 prostate cancer guideline, reflecting an evidence-driven mindset and a commitment to guideline-based, reproducible care. His influence extends to the international urology community through peer-review and editorial responsibilities. Prof. Graefen served as an editor for European Urology’s “Surgery in Motion” and is listed on the journal’s editorial board, indicating sustained involvement in disseminating and curating surgical knowledge for the field. He is also active in major professional organizations, including the German Society of Urology, the European Association of Urology, and the American Urological Association, and is described as a reviewer for numerous national and international scientific journals. Clinically and scientifically, Prof. Graefen is associated with innovation that aims to improve precision in staging and treatment, particularly in challenging scenarios such as recurrent or oligorecurrent prostate cancer. He has co-authored research involving PSMA-based radioguided salvage surgery, an emerging approach that builds on PSMA-ligand imaging and is being actively investigated for its potential to guide more targeted surgical removal of recurrent disease.