Mercy Unveils the Next Phase in Radiation Treatment

In addition to its physical expansion, the Sr. Caritas Cancer Center is expanding the scope of its treatment options. One example is an advanced radiation-treatment system called Elekta Infinity, which reduces the time required for radiotherapy sessions to five minutes or less, while giving clinicians the ability to treat targets more aggressively than before.

“With the acquisition of the Elekta Infinity technology, our team of professionals has access to the most advanced radiation treatment option, assuring the best possible outcome for our patients,” said Dr. Catherine Carton, medical director of the cancer center and chairperson of the Cancer Program at Mercy Medical Center.

Elekta Infinity incorporates volumetric modulated arc therapy (VMAT), an innovative way to deliver radiation treatments that proponents call a significant improvement over current approaches. With the VMAT technology, the target area is continuously irradiated while the source of the beam rotates around the patient.

Clinicians using Elekta Infinity can create a dose that conforms very tightly to the target area in significantly less time than with conventional techniques, Carton noted. Elekta VMAT achieves this with sophisticated computer programming that simultaneously controls five different system components, and a treatment session typically can be conducted in five minutes or less, including true 3-D imaging.

To determine the precise location of tumors and normal surrounding tissues, traditional radiotherapy calls for imaging studies to be done several days before treatment, she explained, but with Elekta Infinity, imaging can take place at the time and place of treatment without slowing down the treatment process.

“In addition to improving accuracy, Elekta Infinity’s low-dose imaging capability helps minimize the side effects of radiation therapy by reducing the margins previously set to account for uncertainties or target dimensions, location, and movement,” Carton said. “For patients, this means the higher doses of radiation can be delivered directly to tumors and cancer cells, with minimal exposure to healthy tissue.”