The recognised starting point
ACi and MACi
The established search terms for cell-based cartilage regeneration. Professor Lee uses them as the familiar reference point when explaining the newer non-surgical and surgical pathways.
International patients · Netherlands
Advanced cartilage repair in London, about an hour from Schiphol
Dutch patients travel to London Cartilage Clinic for cartilage repair, regeneration and ligament preservation, a short flight from Amsterdam and in a clinic that operates in English.
Read the International Patient Guide
Reviewed byProfessor Paul Lee MBBch, FRCS (Tr & Orth), PhDCartilage and joint preservation expertiseWhy London Cartilage Clinic
Why patients from the Netherlands choose London Cartilage Clinic
London is about an hour from Schiphol, and English proficiency in the Netherlands is very high, so the practical friction of travelling for treatment is low. The reason patients come is the depth of cartilage and joint-preservation expertise and the range of options.
Professor Paul Lee assesses whether a joint-preserving cartilage repair or regeneration option is suitable before defaulting to replacement, across the knee in particular, with hip and other joints scoped honestly.
Searching for “kraakbeen behandeling Londen”?That is us, cartilage treatment in London.
Why patients travel for treatment
Start with ACi or MACi. Then see what is now possible.
Patients from the Netherlands often arrive searching for ACi or MACi because those are the best-known cartilage cell treatments. They remain important. The assessment also shows where NanoACi, the wider Nano family, the Structure-led STACi pathway, ChondroFiller or Mytocel MSK may fit more precisely.
Non-surgical RegenRepair™
The Nano family
NanoACi for cartilage, NanoAMi for meniscus, NanoATi for tendon and NanoALi for ligament adapt Seed, Soil and Signal to the tissue being treated.
Surgical RegenRepair™
STACi adds Structure
When alignment, stability or the damage pattern needs surgery, STACi addresses Structure before adding the Seed, Soil and Signal cartilage-regeneration biology.
Standalone or within a pathway
Mytocel MSK and ChondroFiller
Mytocel MSK provides living autologous micrografts; ChondroFiller provides a collagen scaffold. Each has a standalone role and both sit within Professor Lee’s wider regenerative toolkit.
Been told replacement is your only option?
Told a knee replacement is your only option in the Netherlands?
Advanced joint-preserving cartilage repair is offered by only a small minority of surgeons in the Netherlands. A 2023 survey of 115 Dutch knee specialists found that only about 6% offered autologous chondrocyte implantation, and only about a fifth treated cartilage defects in patients aged 40 to 60. So being told replacement is the only option can reflect what is offered locally rather than what is possible.
For suitable patients, cartilage repair and regeneration may be an alternative, depending on a full assessment of your imaging, the size and location of the damage and your goals. This is strongest at the knee. It is about options, never about being faster.
Every alternative-to-replacement statement is a clinical judgement made only after a full assessment. Suitability depends on your individual case.
Most relevant treatments
Treatments most relevant to patients from the Netherlands
ACi and MACi
The better-known cell-based cartilage regeneration procedures, kept as a clear starting point and assessed alongside NanoACi and the Structure-led STACi pathway.
Find out more
RegenRepair™ and the Nano family
Professor Lee’s Seed, Soil, Signal framework, adapted into NanoACi for cartilage, NanoAMi for meniscus, NanoATi for tendon and NanoALi for ligament.
Find out more
NanoACi
A non-arthroscopic cartilage-regeneration pathway combining autologous micrografts, a collagen scaffold and platelet-rich fibrin in one image-guided session.
Find out more
STACi
Professor Lee’s surgical RegenRepair™ pathway: Structure first, then Seed, Soil and Signal for cartilage damage that needs mechanical correction or stabilisation as well as regeneration.
Find out more
ChondroFiller
Collagen cartilage regeneration delivered by injection, made by Meidrix Biomedicals GmbH. The clinic was the first in the UK to offer it as an injection.
Find out more
Mytocel MSK
A single-session regenerative injection using living autologous micrografts prepared chair-side from a small sample of the patient’s own tissue.
Find out moreGetting here
Getting here from the Netherlands
Amsterdam Schiphol to London is a short flight of about an hour, making a day or overnight visit for consultation straightforward.
Schiphol to London
About a one-hour flight to London City, Heathrow, Gatwick or Luton, with frequent daily services.
Virtual first
A discovery call and virtual consultation with Professor Lee can happen before you travel, with imaging reviewed in advance.
English throughout
The clinic operates in English, which is widely spoken in the Netherlands, so nothing is lost in translation.
Visiting us
How to find us
Consultations
66 Harley Street
London W1G 7HD
United Kingdom
Surgery
A partner hospital on Weymouth Street, a few minutes from Harley Street. Imaging is arranged for you as part of your pathway.
Getting here
Central London, a short walk from Regent’s Park, Oxford Circus and Bond Street underground stations.
Costs and insurance
Costs and insurance for patients from the Netherlands
euros (EUR)Zvw basic insurance plus pay-and-claim-back
Treatment at London Cartilage Clinic is direct pay, quoted in pounds sterling. Your bank handles the conversion from euros.
Reimbursement of overseas private treatment through Dutch basic (Zvw) or supplementary insurance varies and is not guaranteed. Where any cover applies it is handled as pay-and-claim-back: you pay the clinic and submit an itemised invoice. Confirm the specifics with your insurer before travelling.
Authority
The surgeon you are choosing
International patients are usually choosing between a small number of world specialists, so the surgeon matters more than any single treatment. Your consultation, your treatment and your follow-up are all with Professor Paul Lee.
- Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon and medical engineer, PhD
- Internationally published in cartilage repair and joint preservation, cited over 1,000 times
- Lead of an ICRS teaching centre for cartilage regeneration
- Joint-replacement outcomes recorded in the National Joint Registry, within the expected range
- Member of the British Association for Surgery of the Knee (BASK)
International patients · Netherlands
Frequently asked questions
Why travel from the Netherlands when I could be treated locally?
For many patients the question is not distance but options. Advanced cartilage repair is offered by only a small minority of Dutch knee specialists, so it is worth an assessment of whether a joint-preserving option is suitable for you before accepting that replacement is the only route.
How long is the trip from Amsterdam?
Amsterdam Schiphol to London is about an hour by air. Many patients handle the first consultation virtually and travel only when there is a clear plan.
Can I claim the cost back through my Dutch insurance?
Cover for overseas private treatment varies and is not guaranteed. Where it applies, it is pay-and-claim-back: you settle with the clinic and claim using an itemised invoice. Check with your insurer first.
Start your journey from the Netherlands
Wherever you are travelling from, the first step is the same. Talk it through on a discovery call, or have a virtual consultation with Professor Lee before you plan any travel.