Treatment plans can be modified to take into account changes in the shape and position of tumours
Siemens Healthcare has introduced the IM-RealART solution, which combines the Artiste solution linear accelerator, the 550TxT treatment table, the CTVision system for diagnostic CT, and the RealART planning system from Prowess for adaptive radiotherapy.
Using IM-RealART, treatment plans can be modified to take into account changes in the shape and position of tumours, while the patient is on the treatment table. This means that both the radiation fields and dose are recalculated before the next fraction is irradiated. Using the 160MLC multileaf collimator, the radiation field is accurately confined to the tumour, saving the surrounding healthy tissue, said the company.
The company claims that by incorporating CTVision, IM-RealART provides diagnostic image quality directly in the treatment room using a CT scanner running on rails. While the patient lies on the treatment table, the latest scans can be compared to the original treatment planning scans. If the shape or the position of the tumour has changed significantly, the treatment plan can be adapted immediately. The recalculation to correct the shape of the radiation field and dose can be performed in approximately seven minutes.
IM-RealART can also be combined with the IM-confident plan consisting of Artiste with the 160MLC and an intelligent treatment planning software. These components help to reduce the treatment time required for Intensity-Modulated Radiation Therapy (IMRT) to five minutes or less, said the company.
Lawrence Foulsham, product manager of molecular imaging and oncology at Siemens Healthcare, said: “IM-RealART and IM-Confident are designed to offer high precision therapy to meet individual patient needs plus make treatment simpler and more efficient. Using innovative technologies, tumours are treated with pinpoint accuracy while the latest software and imaging ensure that planning, replanning and therapy take place as swiftly as possible.”