Transforming Cancer Treatment: How Linear Accelerators Enhance Therapy

By Dr. Sumant Gupta in Cancer Truebeam Linac

Nov 4, 2022

Transforming Cancer Treatment: How Linear Accelerators Enhance Therapy at Metro Cancer Institute

Today, leading cancer centers offer personalized treatment using advanced radiation therapy, including cutting-edge linear accelerators like Varian’s TrueBeam Hyper Arc LINAC system. This technology represents a pinnacle in cancer therapy, precisely configuring high-energy X-rays before each session to match tumor size, shape, and location. Patients benefit from targeted radiation therapy tailored to treat malignant growths with minimal impact on healthy tissue effectively.

 Purpose of Linear Accelerators

The most prevalent and preferred equipment used for external beam radiation therapy on cancer patients is a medical linear accelerator. It targets the patient’s tumour with high-energy x-rays or electrons. As a result, these advanced LINAC can precisely target and eliminate malignant cells in a patient’s body while causing minimal damage to the surrounding healthy tissue.

Cancer cells do not succumb immediately to radiation therapy; it often requires several days or weeks of treatment to damage their DNA, leading to their eventual death sufficiently. This gradual process underscores the importance of consistent and targeted radiation sessions in effectively treating cancer. Following the completion of the radiation therapy, the cancer cells then continue to break down for several weeks.

Radiation oncologists typically advise patients on the volume and dosage of their treatment. Additionally, a dosimetrist and a medical physicist will determine the dosage quantity and timing and compute the time for acceleration.

How is Safety Guaranteed?

It is crucial to take all necessary precautions to guarantee the patient’s safety when utilising this equipment.

A treatment plan is carefully developed and authorized by the radiation oncologist in collaboration with the radiation dosimetrist and physician before any therapy begins. This meticulous planning ensures that the treatment is delivered precisely according to the patient’s needs. Rigorous quality assurance processes are implemented to verify the accuracy and safety of each treatment session. The linear accelerator is equipped with multiple safeguards to prevent the emission of radiation doses exceeding prescribed limits, ensuring optimal patient safety throughout the treatment course.

Every day before a patient undergoes treatment, the radiation therapist at Metro Cancer Institute meticulously inspects all equipment. This ensures that the radiation strength remains consistent and that the beam operates optimally, maintaining high standards of treatment precision and safety.

Using a closed-circuit video monitor, the radiation therapist continuously monitors the patient throughout the treatment session at Metro Cancer Institute. The therapy room is equipped with a microphone, enabling direct communication between the patient and therapist whenever necessary, ensuring personalized care and comfort during the procedure.

Ensuring the safety of the linear accelerator operators is equally crucial. The linear accelerator is housed in a chamber with lead and concrete walls, which shields the high-energy x-rays and prevents anyone outside the room from being exposed to them.

Metro Cancer Institute’s TrueBeam HyperArc incorporates multiple built-in safety features designed to prevent the delivery of radiation doses exceeding prescribed levels, ensuring utmost patient safety. Additionally, rigorous and frequent inspections of all equipment and tools are conducted to ensure optimal functionality and safety standards are maintained at all times.

A linear accelerator can treat cancer in nearly any part of the human body. Additionally, it may be utilised to carry out a number of radiation delivery methods, such as:

• Traditional radiation treatment using an external beam
• Radiation treatment with intensity modulation
• Treatment with stereotactic body radiotherapy
• Radiation treatment using image guidance

Benefits of Metro Cancer Institute’s Radiation Program

If your oncologist recommends radiation therapy following a cancer diagnosis, our advanced linear accelerator technology can significantly enhance treatment outcomes. Some key advantages of linear accelerators for cancer therapy include:

• With remarkable precision, TrueBeam HyperArc can pinpoint tumors using high-resolution digital images. The name of this method is image-guided radiation treatment.
• Compared to earlier electrostatic particle accelerators, the linear accelerator has the capacity to produce particles with higher energy if required. The accelerating voltage in these machines does not limit the particle’s energy because, in contrast to traditional accelerators, the voltage causes the particles to be accelerated several times.
• Linear accelerators are versatile in treating cancer that can occur anywhere in the body, including critical areas like the uterus, breast, cervix, or prostate. This capability underscores their effectiveness in providing targeted radiation therapy to diverse cancer sites, enhancing treatment outcomes and patient care across different anatomical locations.
• High-power LINACs are designed to accelerate electrons to relativistic speeds, crucial for minimizing energy loss from synchrotron radiation in high-speed arcs. This innovation allows for maximizing electron power within the confines of specific-sized synchrotrons, ensuring efficient energy application in advanced cancer treatment technologies like TrueBeam LINACs.
• HyperARC by TrueBeam enables daily monitoring of cancer progression, empowering doctors to adapt each therapy session as tumors evolve. This personalized approach significantly enhances the cure rate by ensuring precise and timely adjustments to treatment plans.

Conclusion

Cancer therapy has been transformed by linear accelerators, with Varian’s TrueBeam LINAC with HyperARC leading the charge. This advanced system delivers accurate, faster, and smarter treatments, accelerating therapy sessions and enhancing cure rates while customizing treatment to each patient’s specific needs.

So, if you are looking for the best cancer treatment solutions, visit the Metro Cancer Institute that often this modern & patient-centric system.