in-Tech Revolution

We are in the edge of technological advancement nowadays, right? In fact, even our medical gadgets have a lot of improvement and development. That is why this present day, it is impossible that there is no ways in having treatment with such diseases. One of those technologies that our medical society can use is the Volumetric Modulated Arc Therapy Treatment or VMAT. This technology provides a simultaneous control of the linear accelerator gantry position and speed, the leaves and angle of the multileaf collimator and dose rate. This flexibility enables highly conformal cancer treatments, as well as optimal sparing of the healthy tissue around the target. In addition, VMAT significantly reduces patient treatment times, leading to greater patient comfort and stillness for a more efficient and precise treatment.

Dietmar Georg, Ph.D., head of the Division of Medical Radiation Physics at General Hospital Vienna (Medical University Vienna, Vienna, Austria) says the first patient was treated for glioblastoma, a serious brain tumor that was positioned near vital structures such as the brain stem and optical lenses and nerves. The treatment consisted of three non-coplanar VMAT arcs with collimator rotation. The entire treatment took just 10 minutes, including creation and evaluation of the patient’s brain images and treatment positioning.
“This therapy is applied in very complex situations where the localization and form of the tumor requires tailored intensity modulated treatment,” says Dr. Georg.

General Hospital Vienna used its existing Elekta Synergy® S system to perform the VMAT treatment, along with Elekta’s next generation linear accelerator control software. Elekta’s VMAT solution also includes ERGO++ treatment planning system for rotational therapy, and MOSAIQ™ image-enabled oncology Electronic Medical Records (EMR) system. This complete VMAT solution is now available in upgrades to existing Elekta accelerators.

I do nope that this country of mine can access this amazing technology. As a nurse, I always wish that our hospitals here in the Philippines can acquire this awesome gadget. Well, for now! I think this will just remain as a dream.