July 17, 2009 - After doctors at the Space Coast Cancer Center in Titusville, Fla., surgically removed a brain tumor, the patient’s daily treatments are taking just two minutes to complete, rather than the typical 20 minute session, using Varian Medical System’s RapidArc radiotherapy technology.
The treatment’s fast approach enables doctors to deliver image-guided radiotherapy that conforms to a targeted area two to eight times faster than was previously possible.
Campbell's radiotherapy began in May and will continue through July. Each weekday, after he's positioned on a treatment table, a machine equipped with RapidArc delivers his daily treatment in about two minutes. "I don't feel any discomfort during a session, and after I'm through, I'm able to sit right up and walk out of the center," he said.
According to Cindy Bryant, M.D., a radiation oncologist at Space Coast, "The RapidArc plan conformed very closely to the part of his brain where his tumor had been, allowing us to avoid the optic nerves and other important sensitive tissues. But if there’s even a little movement during a treatment, our ability to be this accurate can be affected. The treatments are over before a patient has had much time to move."
For more information: www.varian.com
