Medical Oncologist
CION Cancer Clinics
Where can you get Y-90 radioembolisation in India? | CION Cancer Clinics
Y-90 radioembolisation is available in India, mostly in large hospitals in the major cities, including Hyderabad. Few centres offer it because it needs interventional radiology, a licensed nuclear medicine team and imported beads. This page explains what a centre needs, how people from the districts reach treatment, and why the first question is whether Y-90 suits you at all. At CION Cancer Clinics, a multidisciplinary tumour board weighs your liver function and your scans before recommending any treatment.
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Medically reviewed by Dr. Naresh GunduConsultant Medical Oncologist · MBBS, DNB (Internal Medicine), DM (Medical Oncology, AIIMS) · last reviewed October 2026, next review due October 2027
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On this page
- Is Y-90 available in India, and in Hyderabad?
- What does a hospital need before it can offer Y-90?
- How do you get Y-90 if you live outside Hyderabad?
- Words you will hear when Y-90 is discussed
- Four things families tell us about Y-90, and what is true
- What this page cannot tell you
- Common questions about where to get Y-90
The short answer
Is Y-90 available in India, and in Hyderabad?
Yes. Y-90 radioembolisation is offered in India, mostly at large hospitals in the major cities, and Hyderabad is one of them. It is not available in most district hospitals, because it needs a specialist team, special licences and beads that are ordered in for each patient.
What Y-90 is, in one line
Y-90 (also called TARE or radioembolisation) is a treatment for tumours in the liver. Tiny beads carrying radiation are passed through a thin tube into the liver artery, so the radiation lands inside the tumour. How it works is explained on our Y-90 radioembolisation page and on TARE explained.
Why availability is the wrong first question
Families often start by asking where Y-90 is done. The more useful question is whether it suits this liver and this tumour at all. Many people are better served by TACE, ablation, surgery or treatment through a drip. Once a liver tumour board says Y-90 is right, finding a centre in Hyderabad is rarely the hard part.
CION does not perform Y-90 itself. CION's oncologists assess you and coordinate Y-90 through accredited partner hospitals.Why so few places
What does a hospital need before it can offer Y-90?
Y-90 is a team treatment. A hospital needs all of these in place, which is why it sits in larger centres.
Interventional radiology
Doctors who work inside blood vessels using live X-ray pictures. They map the liver arteries, close off risky branches and place the beads. The same team usually does TACE.
Nuclear medicine
A department licensed to handle radioactive material. It runs the mapping scan, works out the radiation dose for your liver and checks where the beads went afterwards.
Needed for
- The tracer scan before treatment
- Dose planning
- Safe storage and disposal
A supply of beads
The beads are made abroad and imported. Their radioactivity fades quickly, so each order is timed to your treatment date. A delay at either end can move the date.
A liver tumour board
Oncologists, surgeons, radiologists and liver doctors who decide together whether Y-90 is the right choice, and what comes after it. See what a liver tumour board decides.
Not sure whether this applies to you?
Ask an oncologistFrom your district to treatment
How do you get Y-90 if you live outside Hyderabad?
Start with the reports you already have
Your CT or MRI, the scan report, any biopsy report and recent liver blood tests are enough for a first review. Much of this can be shared before you travel.
A tumour board decides if Y-90 fits
A CION medical oncologist sees you or reviews your reports, and the case goes to the tumour board. If another treatment suits you better, you will be told why.
The mapping visit
If Y-90 is chosen, the first hospital visit is the mapping scan. It checks the liver arteries and whether radiation could leak to the lungs. Some people are ruled out at this step.
The treatment visit
The beads are ordered for a fixed date, and treatment happens at the partner hospital. Many people go home the same day or the next. Your team will tell you where and when.
Follow-up closer to home
Blood tests and later scans can often be arranged nearer your district, with the results reviewed by your CION oncologist.
On your report
Words you will hear when Y-90 is discussed
- TARE
- Transarterial radioembolisation. Radiation given through the liver artery. Y-90 is the radioactive element used.
- Microspheres
- The tiny beads that carry the radiation. They come in two kinds, glass and resin, explained on glass vs resin.
- Mapping or work-up angiogram
- The test procedure before treatment that maps the arteries and checks for leakage of blood to the lungs or gut.
- Lung shunt
- Blood that slips past the liver into the lungs. Too much of it can rule Y-90 out, because the beads would follow it.
- Interventional radiologist
- The specialist who does the procedure through a thin tube, usually from the groin or wrist.
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Commonly believed
Four things families tell us about Y-90, and what is true
"Y-90 is not available in India, so we must go abroad."
It is offered in several large Indian cities, including Hyderabad. Travelling abroad adds cost and breaks the link with the team who will follow you up afterwards.
"Y-90 is the newest treatment, so it must be the strongest."
Newer does not mean better for every liver. For many people TACE, ablation, surgery or treatment through a drip is the more suitable choice. Read TACE vs TARE for how the choice is made.
"Any hospital that does angiograms can do Y-90."
A heart catheter lab is not enough. Y-90 also needs nuclear medicine, a radiation licence, liver experience and an imported bead supply.
"If we can afford it, the doctor should just book it."
Paying does not make it safe. The mapping scan and liver blood tests decide. Some people are turned down after the mapping scan, and that is the system working, not a refusal of care.
Being straight with you
What this page cannot tell you
It cannot give you a list of hospitals. Which centres offer Y-90 changes as teams, licences and bead supply change, and we do not compare or name other hospitals. CION's team can tell you which partner hospital currently offers it and arrange the referral.
It cannot give you a price
Y-90 is among the costlier liver treatments, mostly because the beads are imported. The total depends on the hospital, the type of bead and the plan. Ask for a written, itemised estimate. Our page on Y-90 cost in India explains what builds the bill. Aarogyasri, Ayushman Bharat and private insurance each have their own rules, which change, so check cover with the treating hospital before the date is fixed.
Who this does not apply to
If your liver is failing, with jaundice or fluid that keeps coming back, Y-90 is usually not an option wherever you go. The same is true if the cancer has spread widely outside the liver. If the cancer in your liver came from the bowel, your plan sits with the bowel cancer team.
Questions we are asked
Common questions about where to get Y-90
Can I get Y-90 in Hyderabad?
Yes. Y-90 is offered at a small number of larger hospitals in Hyderabad. CION coordinates it through accredited partner hospitals once a tumour board agrees it suits you. Your team will tell you where the mapping scan and the treatment take place.
Does CION do Y-90 at its own centres?
No. CION's oncologists assess you, present your case to the tumour board and coordinate Y-90 through partner hospitals. Consultations, treatment through a drip, supportive care and follow-up happen at CION centres. One helpline serves every centre.
Why does it take time to get a date?
The mapping scan comes first, and the results must be reviewed. The beads are then ordered from abroad for a fixed date, because their radioactivity fades quickly. Ask your team how long each step is expected to take for you.
Do we need to stay in Hyderabad for treatment?
Usually only around the mapping visit and the treatment visit. Many people go home the same day or the next. Plan for a companion and for a few quiet days at home afterwards. Ask about radiation safety at home before you travel back.
Is Y-90 approved in India?
Y-90 beads are imported and used in licensed Indian hospitals with nuclear medicine departments. Rules on radioactive material are strict, which is one reason few centres offer it. The treating hospital can confirm the current position for the bead type it uses.
Is Y-90 better than TACE?
Not as a rule. Each suits different tumours and different livers. Y-90 may be chosen when TACE is risky, for example when a tumour has reached the portal vein. Read about Y-90 with portal vein thrombosis.
Will Aarogyasri or insurance cover it?
It depends on the scheme, the policy and the hospital, and the rules change. Ask the treating hospital to check cover in writing before the date is fixed. CION's team can help you with scheme paperwork and with understanding an estimate.
What should I send for a first review?
Send the latest CT or MRI report, the scan images if you have them, any biopsy report and recent liver blood tests. Add a list of all medicines, including herbal ones. A CION oncologist will tell you whether Y-90 is worth exploring.
Your Specialists
Meet CION's liver cancer specialists. Bring your scan reports and liver blood tests.
Our medical and surgical oncologists plan liver cancer care together, weighing the tumour and how well your liver works before choosing surgery, a liver-directed procedure or medicines.
Medical Oncologist
Dr. C. Raghavendra Reddy
MBBS(Gold Medal), DNB(General Medicine), DM(Medical Oncology)(Gold Medal)
Medical Oncologist
Dr. Bharati Devi Gorantla
MBBS, MD(General Medicine), DM(Medical Oncology)(Adyar,Chennai), ECMO, MRCP SCE(UK)
Medical Oncologist
Dr. Owais Mohammed
MBBS, MD (General Medicine), DrNB (Medical Oncology), ECMO, MRCP SCE (Medical Oncology) (UK)
Medical Oncologist
Medical Oncologist
Surgical Oncologist
Dr. Muralidhar Muddusetty
MBBS (AIIMS), MS (Surgery) (AIIMS), DNB (Surgical Oncology), MRCS (Edinburgh)
Surgical Oncologist
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Sources
- RadiologyInfo.org (RSNA/ACR) — Radioembolization (Y90)
- American Cancer Society — Embolization Therapy for Liver Cancer
- National Cancer Institute — Liver Cancer Treatment
- Cancer Research UK — Treatment for liver cancer
This page is general information, not a prescription. Do not change or stop any treatment based on what you read here. If anything is worrying you, contact your own treating team — or call our helpline and we will help you reach the right specialist.
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Related pages
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Wondering whether Y-90 suits your liver?
Share your scan reports and blood tests, and a CION oncologist can take your case to the tumour board and coordinate Y-90 through a partner hospital if it fits. One helpline serves every CION centre.