TomoTherapy
Since 2009, Lancaster General Health has offered the Tomotherapy® Hi-Art® system to enhance care for patients with specific types of cancer, an innovative patient care alternative that minimizes risks to healthy tissue.
Planning
Before beginning a TomoTherapy treatment, the doctor uses 3D images from a combination of scanning technologies (such as CT and MRI) and special software to establish the precise contours for each treatment volume (tumor) and any regions at risk (sensitive organs or structures). The doctor then decides how much radiation the tumor should receive, as well as acceptable levels for surrounding structures. The Hi•Art treatment system calculates the appropriate pattern, position and intensity of the radiation beam to be delivered, to match the doctor’s prescription.
Patient positioning
As both a treatment delivery machine and a CT scanner, the Hi•Art system allows the therapist to take a CT scan just before each treatment. With the scan, they can verify the position of the tumor and, if necessary, adjust the patient’s position to help make sure radiation is directed right where it should be.
Continuous 360º treatment delivery
The Hi•Art treatment system delivers intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) with a helical (spiral) delivery pattern. Photon radiation is produced by a linear accelerator (or linac for short), which travels in multiple circles and moves in unison with a device called a multi-leaf collimator, or MLC. Meanwhile, the couch guides the patient slowly through the center of the ring. Each time the linac makes a loop around the patient it directs a unique, optimized set of radiation beamlets at the tumor.