Posts Tagged ‘Radiotherapy’
2012 Future of Radiation Medicine
Thursday, March 15, 2012
1 – 6:30 p.m. • 6:30 – 8 p.m. Dinner
Four Seasons Hotel • Baltimore, MD
The 2012 Future of Radiation Medicine Symposium brings together the world’s leading authorities in radiation medicine to discuss the latest trends in radiotherapy. Radiation safety considerations in the clinic will be addressed, followed by a Q&A with presenters. To view a complete agenda with topics and speakers, or to register, please click here.
Who should attend?
The one-day symposium is designed for the entire cancer care team where you can earn AMA PR Category 1, CAMPEP, ASRT and MDCB educational credits.
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Radiation oncologists
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Medical oncologists
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Medical physicists
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Oncology nurses
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Radiation therapists
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Neurosurgeons
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Executives and administrators
WESTPORT, Sep 04 (Reuters Health) – Stereotactic radiosurgery slows progression and improves survival in some patients with metastatic disease to the brain, according to a report in the August issue of Neurosurgery.
Although chemotherapy helps few patients with intracerebral metastases, external beam radiotherapy, radiosurgical ablation, and surgical removal of metastases have demonstrated some effectiveness, the authors explain.
Dr. Joseph C. T. Chen, of the University of Southern California, in Los Angeles, and colleagues reviewed their series of 190 patients who underwent gamma knife stereotactic radiosurgery for intracerebral metastatic tumors.
Median survival after radiosurgery was 34 weeks, the authors report, but survival was better among non-melanoma patients (39 weeks) than among melanoma patients (28 weeks). These survival figures are similar to those reported in open surgical series.
Median survival was significantly longer in patients with controlled disease (more than 50 weeks) than with active disease (28 weeks), the investigators note, and in patients with posterior fossa metastases (40.5 weeks) rather than supratentorial lesions (30.3 weeks).
Most metastases followed during the study were controlled for the lifetime of the patient, the report indicates, with only 6% showing late progression and only 6% progressing despite therapy.
“In the absence of clear data demonstrating the advantage of one modality over the other with respect to overall survival,” the authors conclude, “the choice between surgery and radiosurgery must be made on the basis of time, cost, patient acceptance and the availability of the procedure.”
“Radiosurgery should not be considered as a panacea or a miracle treatment,” Dr. Chen told Reuters Health.. “It simply is a less invasive, better tolerated, and safer alternative to open surgical intervention and whole brain irradiation for most, but not all patients with metastatic disease to the brain.”
He added, “We must recognize that just because we are trained as neurosurgeons to use a knife, this may not be the best treatment for all patients. Neurosurgeons must change the nature of their practice to be able to use radiosurgical methods in the treatment of their patients.”
To read the entire article – Visit Oncolink.com
For more information on Brain Metastases, click the link below to process to www.livingwithbrainmets.org – Living With Brain Mets
Radiotherapy, the treatment of cancer with radiation, is a very important element of curative treatment for cancer, and is also important for maintaining and/or improving patients’ quality of life. It is anticipated that it will retain a key role in cancer treatment for the next 10-20 years and will continue to make a significant contribution to improved treatment and palliative outcomes.
Radiotherapy owes its pre-eminent position in the treatment of cancer to its ability to deliver, with precision, a lethal radiation dose to each cancer cell situated within a chosen area of the body. The main aim of treatment is to give a sufficient radiation dose to the tumor to cause destruction without producing unacceptable damage to surrounding normal tissue. The higher the differential between the dose to the tumor and that received by the normal tissue, the better the chance of a cure. This high differential hinges on the precision with which the size and position of the tumor can be ascertained and, equally importantly, on the accuracy with which the required dose of radiation can be delivered to the chosen site. Radiation can be delivered in a variety of ways, depending on the nature of the cancer. The most commonly used method is called external beam therapy, which directs high energy X-ray radiation at the tumor. Although the radiation affects both cancer and normal cells, because of the nature of the cancer cells it has a greater effect on them. Treatment aimed at cure will give the highest possible dose of radiation, within safe limits, to attempt to kill all the cancer cells. Sometimes smaller doses are used, where the aim is to reduce the size of a tumor and/or relieve symptoms. Radiotherapy treatment is given using either a machine called a linear accelerator or, for some skin tumors, a superficial X-ray unit. To receive the radiotherapy, the patient lies on a couch under the machine, and is asked to remain still during the actual treatment. Every course of radiotherapy treatment is designed to suit the particular needs of the person receiving it, so prior to treatment the patient will make a preliminary visit to the hospital for the course of treatment planned. A typical treatment will last six weeks, with the patient visiting the hospital every day.
The Elekta Synergy with VMAT Animation
Axial dose distribution & Sagittal dose distribution
Deliver a higher dose to the prostate while sparing or minimizing the dose to the rectum, in an effort to reduce or eliminate acute and delayed rectal morbidity. Total session time, including patient positioning, ultrasound-guided targeting, and intensity modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) delivery should not exceed 30 minutes, maintaining the existing patient load. Rationale for IMRT approach Radiotherapy planning with PrecisePLAN® IMRT at United Radiation Oncology (URO) demonstrates a considerable decrease in radiation dose to the rectum.
Patient selection
Patients diagnosed with prostate cancer and referred to URO receive an initial consultation,consisting of history, physical exam, psychosocial assessment and discussion of treatment options. Candidates for IMRT are those patients with adverse prognostic factors, whose outcome may improve in response to dose escalation.Adequate localization of the prostate via ultrasound is critical, therefore the patient must be able to drink sufficient fluid to fill the bladder.
Read more on this Prostate Cancer Case Study
Rad (radiation absorbed dose) – A measure of the amount of radiation absorbed by the body, replaced by Gray.
Radiation – A term to describe waves or particles. Types of radiation include x-rays, gamma rays and electron beams
Radiation Physicist – A specialist in the subject of radiation and responsible for the choice and performance of the equipment used. The physicist assists in deciding on the optimum method for delivery of the prescribed radiation.
Radiation therapist – A physician specially trained to treat cancer with radiation therapy machines.
Radiation therapy – The use of high-energy radiation from x-rays, gamma rays, neutrons and other sources to kill cancer cells and shrink tumors. Also known as radiotherapy. Click for more on the Radiation therapy process
Radiologist – A doctor who specializes in reading and interpreting diagnostic x-rays and other imaging techniques.
Radioresistance – A term used to describe cancer cells that do not respond well to radiation
Radiosensitivity – A term used to describe how sensitive cancer cells are to radiation.
Radiosurgery – Therapeutic radiation technique, applying a field of radiation using multiple, focused, finely collimated radiation beams with surgical precision in a single session. Click for more on the Radiosurgery process
Radiotherapy – See Radiation therapy.
Recurrence – The reappearance of a disease after a period of remission.
Remission – Complete or partial disappearance of the signs and symptoms of disease. A remission, however, is not necessarily a cure.
How is Cancer Treated?
How Does Radiotherapy Work?
How does a Linear Accelerator Work?
What is Intensity Modulated Radiotherapy?
- Largest Neurosurgical Center in Russia Acquires Elekta’s Leksell Gamma Knife Perfexion February 6, 2012Russia’s first Leksell Gamma Knife® Perfexion™ system has found a home at the renowned N.N. Burdenko Neurosurgical Institute, just a five-minute car ride from Moscow’s Red Square. On June 2, 2011, a 59-year-old woman was the first Perfexion patient, receiving Gamma Knife® radiosurgery to treat tumor tissue that remained following open surgery. Now, eight mon […]
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