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 · Saudi Arabia
Advanced knee and cartilage treatment in London for Saudi patients
Patients from Riyadh, Jeddah and across Saudi Arabia travel for Professor Paul Lee’s ACi and MACi expertise, NanoACi and the Nano family, surgical STACi, ChondroFiller and Mytocel MSK.
Read the International Patient Guide
Reviewed byProfessor Paul Lee MBBch, FRCS (Tr & Orth), PhDCartilage and joint preservation expertiseWhy London Cartilage Clinic
Why patients from Saudi Arabia travel to Professor Paul Lee in London
Saudi patients have a long-established relationship with London private healthcare and can reach the city directly from Riyadh or Jeddah. London Cartilage Clinic offers a focused orthopaedic pathway around one consultant, advanced imaging review and joint-preserving treatment rather than a fragmented hospital journey.
ACi and MACi are often the familiar search terms. They remain part of the conversation, while the newer pathways show what has changed: NanoACi for non-arthroscopic cartilage regeneration, Nano routes for meniscus, tendon and ligament, STACi where Structure also needs surgical correction, plus ChondroFiller and Mytocel MSK.
Searching for “طبيب غضروف الركبة في لندن”?That is us, knee cartilage doctor in London.
Why patients travel for treatment
Start with ACi or MACi. Then see what is now possible.
Patients from Saudi Arabia 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?
Seeking a joint-preserving alternative from Saudi Arabia?
A replacement recommendation does not automatically mean regeneration is possible, but neither should it prevent a proper joint-preservation assessment. Professor Lee reviews the whole mechanical environment: cartilage, meniscus, ligament, alignment and stability.
The non-surgical Nano pathway and surgical STACi pathway occupy different parts of that spectrum. The purpose of travelling is to reach the right decision and treatment—not to force a regenerative answer where replacement is more appropriate.
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 Saudi Arabia
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 Saudi Arabia
Riyadh and Jeddah have direct connections with London. The team reviews imaging remotely and builds the consultation, treatment and early-recovery window into one planned visit.
Riyadh and Jeddah
Direct services connect both cities with London, with flight times around seven hours depending on route and schedule.
Specialist opinion first
A virtual consultation and scan review clarify whether ACi, MACi, a Nano pathway, STACi or another option merits travel.
One coordinated itinerary
Consultation, further imaging, treatment and the first review are scheduled around the appropriate London stay.
The latest airline schedule and UK entry requirements should always be checked before booking.
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 Saudi Arabia
Saudi riyals (SAR)direct pay, private insurance or written sponsorship approval
Fees are quoted in pounds sterling. Your bank handles conversion from Saudi riyals, and the clinic provides a written estimate after Professor Lee has assessed the case.
Government, employer and private-insurance funding are separate from clinical acceptance. Written authorisation or a guarantee of payment must be in place before travel; without that, treatment is direct pay and an itemised invoice is provided.
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 · Saudi Arabia
Frequently asked questions
Can Professor Lee review my MRI from Saudi Arabia?
Yes. Recent MRI images, the radiology report and a concise medical history can be reviewed in advance of a virtual consultation. New imaging or an in-person examination may still be required in London before treatment.
Is NanoACi the same as ACi or MACi?
No. ACi and MACi are established surgical cell-based cartilage procedures. NanoACi is Professor Lee’s non-arthroscopic RegenRepair™ cartilage pathway, delivered by image-guided injection. STACi is the surgical RegenRepair™ route when Structure must also be addressed.
How long should a Saudi patient stay in London?
That depends on the treatment and flight risk. An injection-only pathway and a surgical STACi procedure need different recovery windows. The itinerary is agreed before booking and includes the first clinical review.
Can treatment be arranged through a Saudi sponsor?
Only where the sponsor has approved the named treatment and supplied the required written authorisation or guarantee of payment. Clinical suitability and funding approval are separate decisions.
Start your journey from Saudi Arabia
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.