Novant Health continues implementation of advanced cancer treatment techniques – SGRT via Elekta’s Response gating interface

26 September 2016. Novant Health, a nationally accredited institution in the USA, has become the first cancer care provider in the world to provide Surface Guided Radiotherapy (SGRT) treatment techniques using Elekta’s Response gating interface and Vision RT’s AlignRT® patient motion monitoring system on their Elekta Versa HD™ treatment delivery system.

As more and more institutions implement advanced radiotherapy techniques like Stereotactic Radiosurgery (SRS), Deep Inspiration Breath Hold (DIBH), and Stereotactic Body Radiotherapy (SBRT), there is a need to ensure patients are accurately set up, and manage patient movement during treatment, while maintaining patient comfort.

SGRT is a novel treatment technique that utilizes surface guided solutions to measure the patient’s external surface to ensure they are correctly positioned during set up and treatment by matching surface data, in all six degrees of freedom and in real-time.

For the first time, AlignRT®, a market leading solution for SGRT, provides automatic beam hold capabilities on Elekta treatment delivery systems through Elekta’s Response interface. This means that if the patient moves out of position, the beam is paused automatically until the patient is back in place.

“The combination of Elekta’s Versa HD with Vision RT’s Surface Guided solutions has increased our confidence that we are setting up and treating patients accurately. By matching real-time surface data in all six degrees of freedom, our team can be confident that the patient’s position is as intended for every treatment, and by linking this to our treatment delivery system we are automatically giving our patients an extra level of security,” said Dr. Volker W. Stieber, Director of Stereotactic Radiotherapy at Novant Health Forsyth Medical Center.

“This is another example of Elekta’s open architecture facilitating the implementation of innovative solutions like Vision RT’s AlignRT® solution with our comprehensive treatment delivery solutions,” says Nicky Wilson, VP, Radiotherapy portfolio, Elekta. “This capability allows our customers to receive best of breed solutions in order to provide the best patient care possible.”

“Patient comfort, safety and optimising treatment efficiency are at the heart of Vision RT’s business,” said Adrian Barrett, VP of Product Delivery at Vision RT. “We are very pleased to have delivered AlignRT®’s integration with Response on Elekta’s linear accelerators. This is another milestone in our strategy to integrate with all leading radiotherapy systems, to enhance patient care and facilitate efficient treatments.”

About Elekta

Elekta is a human care company pioneering significant innovations and clinical solutions for treating cancer and brain disorders. The company develops sophisticated, state-of-the-art tools and treatment planning systems for radiation therapy, radiosurgery and brachytherapy, as well as workflow enhancing software systems across the spectrum of cancer care. Stretching the boundaries of science and technology, providing intelligent and resource-efficient solutions that offer confidence to both health care providers and patients, Elekta aims to improve, prolong and even save patient lives. Today, Elekta solutions in oncology and neurosurgery are used in over 6,000 hospitals worldwide. Elekta employs around 3,800 employees globally. The corporate headquarters is located in Stockholm, Sweden, and the company is listed on NASDAQ Stockholm. Website: www.elekta.com Twitter: @Elekta.