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February 29, 2006 |
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Winchester Medical Center Adds IMRT To Enhance
Cancer Treatment
Winchester Medical Center has introduced
Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy, or IMRT,
which offers one of
the most precise forms of external beam
radiation therapy available. Initially,
IMRT is being used at WMC to treat prostate
cancer, but staff anticipates treating selected
patients with brain tumors and cancers of the
head and neck in the near future.
IMRT uses sophisticated software and hardware to
vary the shape and intensity of radiation
delivered to different parts of the treatment
area, according to Rick Keeler, RT-T,
Dosimetrist in the Radiation Therapy department.
“IMRT enables us to sculpt the dose of radiation
around the irregular tumor surface. This means
we can deliver more radiation to just the
affected part and minimize the exposure of the
surrounding healthy tissue,” he explained at a
March Open House.
Treatment is carefully planned using CT images
of the patient and computerized radiation dose
calculations to determine both the intensity of
the dose and the pattern of the area being
treated.
“We are very excited to add IMRT to our arsenal
for treating cancer,” remarked Ellen Yoder,
Executive Director of Oncology Services at
Winchester Medical Center. “The technology
enables us to use radiation therapy more
precisely and effectively, which should result
in fewer side effects and better outcomes for
our patients.”
The medical center’s Varian ClinacŪ 2100 EX
linear accelerator, purchased in 2003, has been
upgraded to deliver the IMRT technology. The
linear accelerator is outfitted with a
multi-leaf collimator, which uses 120
computer-controlled titanium leaves to shape the
radiation beam to conform to the shape of a
tumor.
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