DRESDEN, GERMANY, 18 October 2015 – Today, IBA (Ion Beam Applications S.A., EURONEXT), the world’s leading provider of proton therapy solutions for the treatment of cancer, announces that the clinical team at OncoRay has successfully deployed IBA’s Prompt Gamma Camera in a clinical setting, marking a world first for this new technology. OncoRay, a center of research and innovation for radiation oncology in Dresden, designated as National Center for Radiation Research in Oncology in Germany, is operated with the support of the Universitätsklinikum Carl Gustav Carus, the Dresden Technical University and the HelmholtzZentrum DresdenRossendorf.
The Prompt Gamma Camera was deployed by the OncoRay team from August 17 to August 28 in several successive fractions of the proton radiotherapy treatment received by a cancer patient in Dresden, Germany. The Prompt Gamma Camera ensures instantaneous verification of the proton beam penetration depth within the patient, making this a milestone achievement. At the radiotherapy center in Dresden, the Prompt Gamma Camera is combined with IBA Proteus®PLUS proton therapy equipment.
Proton beams offer the distinct advantage of concentrating their energy deposition at the end of their tracks, coinciding with the targeted cancer cells, while totally sparing the healthy tissues behind the tumor. In contrast, conventional photon beams cannot avoid depositing unnecessary and damaging dose all around the tumor volume. Ascertaining that the proton beam stops right inside the cancerous target volume reduces the risk of detrimental secondary effects and by means of Prompt Gamma imaging, beam depth verification is now possible during treatment.
Ad Statistics
Times Displayed: 22281
Times Visited: 445 Stay up to date with the latest training to fix, troubleshoot, and maintain your critical care devices. GE HealthCare offers multiple training formats to empower teams and expand knowledge, saving you time and money
Leveraging IBA’s dynamic network of academic partners, the company’s Prompt Gamma Camera is the first device to successfully meet the technical challenges of this modality. The deployment by OncoRay represents the successful realization of IBA’s original vision of the concept, and is further evidence of IBA’s leading role in proton therapy innovation.
Prof. Dr. med. Michael Baumann, Director of OncoRay and of the Department of Radiation Oncology at the University Hospital Dresden, commented: “We are very proud of this achievement. The IBA Prompt Gamma Camera represents major progress towards an even more accurate proton beam delivery. It will allow us to take further advantage of the unique characteristics of the proton treatment modality. It’s a significant step toward image guided proton therapy.”
