University Medical Centre (UMC) Utrecht recently installed its third Elekta high-field MR-guided linear acceleration (MR-linac) system, a 1.5T system that allows physicians to capture images of a patient’s tumor and surrounding tissue at the time of treatment.

Allowing the radiologist to monitor the tumor during treatment or between treatment sessions as it changes shape and size is a key benefit that sets the technology apart from conventional linac systems.

"Although MR-linac is not yet approved for use in patients, the system will be used for all types of cancers that are being treated today with radiotherapy while opening the door to anatomies that have previously been considered unsuitable for radiotherapy," a spokesperson for Elekta told HCB News.
"It will be particularly advantageous for those anatomies that are in constant motion, such as the lung, and [those] surrounded by critical structures and intricate complexities," Elekta said.

According to Bas Raaymakers, Ph.D., professor of experimental clinical physics in the department of radiotherapy at UMC Utrecht, in a statement, the ability to visualize radiation therapy during treatment and to adapt treatment in real time based on MR images would allow radiologists to treat cancer with precision and accuracy while improving efficacy and reducing side effects.

UMC Utrecht is the founding member of Elekta’s MR-linac consortium, which is currently composed of seven institutions and was established in 2012 by Elekta and Philips.

"After the significant technology hurdles that the teams have successfully overcome in order to combine advanced high-field digital magnetic resonance imaging with a state-of-the-art linear accelerator, and then validate and test the system, we are now about to enter the next phase of our important journey," said Rob Cascella, CEO Diagnosis and Treatment at Philips.

In April, it was announced that The Netherlands Cancer Institute (NKI) — another consortium member — would begin installation of the system. “Although MR-linac is not yet approved for use in patients, we anticipate that the system will be able to treat all types of cancers that are being treated today with radiation therapy,” Kevin Brown, global vice president of scientific research, Elekta, told HCB News, at that time.

The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center is also a member of the consortium and has also installed the MR-guided linac. By the end of 2016, all seven members of the consortium are expected to have the system.

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