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Elekta: University of Florida Shands Cancer Center Gives New Hope to Spine Tumor Patients

Posted on: Monday, 9 January 2006, 12:00 CST

Oncologists use Elekta Synergy(R) S, the cutting-edge solution for high precision radiation therapy to sharpen targeting and treatment of tumors near the spinal cord. Many patients once considered "untreatable" have new options to improve quality of life and long-term survival.

In treating tumors near the spinal cord with radiation therapy, the key is to hit the tumor with the treatment beams and avoid exposing the spinal cord to damaging levels of radiation. Satisfying both requirements using conventional treatment technology can be difficult in many cases, often leaving doctors with no choice but to withhold treatment. Today, the University of Florida Shands Cancer Center (Gainesville, Fla., USA) offers patients with spine tumors new hope for beating cancer with a sophisticated new radiation treatment machine that enables more confident targeting of lesions near the spine.

In November, University of Florida radiation oncologists at UFSCC used their Elekta Synergy(R) S radiation treatment system with X-ray Volume Image Guidance in its first spine tumor patient, a case that would not have been attempted using a conventional treatment machine.

"A standard radiation therapy unit can't tell you if there has been organ movement inside patients or if patients are in exactly the same position that they were in when you planned the treatment. It makes targeting the radiation beams very challenging," says Robert Amdur, M.D., a UF College of Medicine professor and radiation oncologist at the UFSCC. "In the past we had to use a large safety margin around the tumor or a much lower, less therapeutic dose, or both to avoid giving an excessive dose to the spinal cord. Often, if the lesion is very close to the spinal cord, we may decide not to use radiation therapy at all."

The UFSCC's first patient treated with the Elekta Synergy(R) S had a sarcoma, a primary tumor, located near his spine, Dr. Amdur says. The patient had 25 separate, 15-minute treatments (fractions) for his tumor. Another patient who had a refractory Hodgkin's lesion near his spine was treated with a single fraction, high-dose treatment demonstrating the high accuracy and flexibility of Elekta Synergy(R) S.

"We're hoping that Elekta Synergy(R) S will represent a major advance for a class of patients that didn't previously have very hopeful treatment options," Dr. Amdur concludes.

About UF Shands Cancer Center

The University of Florida Shands Cancer Center is a nationally recognized cancer center, employing nearly 300 clinicians and scientists, in addition to hundreds of research assistants, nurses, technicians and staff at its Gainesville and Jacksonville campuses. Multidisciplinary teams from the colleges in the Health Science Center, including the College of Medicine, Nursing, Veterinary Medicine, Dentistry, Pharmacy and Public Health & Health Professions, work in collaboration to speed discovery and treatment options for individuals diagnosed with cancer. Members of the Center are world-renowned experts who have participated in the research and development of many of the diagnostic and treatment methods used as standard medical practice today. The UF Shands Cancer Center treats more than 4,000 newly diagnosed cancer patients and handles more than 6,000 admissions annually.

About Elekta

Elekta is an international medical-technology Group, providing meaningful clinical solutions, comprehensive information systems and services for improved cancer care and management of brain disorders. All of Elekta's solutions employ non-invasive or minimally invasive techniques and are therefore clinically effective, gentle on the patient and cost-effective.

Clinical solutions include among others Leksell Gamma Knife(R) for non-invasive treatment of brain surgery and Elekta Synergy(R) for image guided radiation therapy (IGRT). Following the acquisition of IMPAC Medical Systems Inc. in April 2005, the Elekta Group is the world's largest supplier of oncology software.

Elekta's systems and solutions are used at over 3,000 hospitals around the world to treat cancer and manage clinical operations as well as to diagnose and treat brain disorders, including tumors, vascular malformations and functional disorders.

With approx. 1700 employees, Elekta's corporate headquarter is located in Stockholm, Sweden and the company is listed on the Stockholm Stock Exchange under the ticker EKTAb. For more information about Elekta, please visit www.elekta.com.

This information was brought to you by Waymaker http://www.waymaker.net

Source: Business Wire

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