Two Swedish cancer centers expand radiotherapy facilities with Varian equipment

By E. Janene Geiss

Philadelphia, May 15 - Two major cancer centers in Sweden are planning to begin image guided radiation therapy treatments for their patients using state-of-the-art equipment from Varian Medical Systems.

Sahlgrenska University Hospital in Gothenburg and Linkoping University Hospital in the southeast of Sweden are both undergoing major expansions to improve patient care and bring down waiting times in their health care regions by acquiring several new linear accelerators equipped with On Board Imager accessories, according to a company news release.

Sahlgrenska Hospital is acquiring three new Clinac linear accelerators, two of which are equipped with On-Board Imager accessories, and will be expanding its existing VARiSVision information management and Eclipse treatment planning networks.

Linkoping Hospital is acquiring two new Clinac accelerators with On-Board Imager devices and an Acuity simulator, as well as upgrading its VARiSVision network to Varian's latest ARIA system.

Using the new On-Board Imager, clinicians at these centers will be able to see the tumor at the time of treatments so that patient positioning and beam-timing can be adjusted to improve the treatment precision, officials said.

Sahlgrenska also will use Varian's RPM respiratory gating system, which enables doctors to track tumor motion and time beam delivery with the patient's natural breathing pattern.

Varian's On-Board Imager device is a digital imaging system mounted on the treatment machine via robotically controlled arms that operate along three axes of motion so that they can be positioned optimally for the best possible view of the tumor, officials said. This device produces high-resolution images of the area to be treated. It also can track tumor motion to provide doctors with a clear indication of exactly how a tumor will move during treatment due to respiration or other repeatable physiological cycles.

Varian is a Palo Alto, Calif., manufacturer of medical technology for treating cancer with radiotherapy and neurological conditions with radiosurgery.

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