New know-how at Cork College Hospital eliminates want for everlasting tattoos in radiotherapy
Cork College Hospital (CUH) is the primary public hospital in Eire to put in know-how that includes a surface-guided system which tracks a affected person’s place earlier than and through radiation remedy to facilitate pinpoint accuracy and enhance remedy supply.
Initially, the brand new know-how is accessible for breast most cancers remedies. It’s to develop into accessible for different remedies within the coming months.
A profit highlighted by use of the know-how is the elimination of the necessity for everlasting pores and skin markings, or tattoos, which had been required, historically, for the correct and reproducible each day supply of radiotherapy.
One other benefit of the newly put in know-how is the power to constantly monitor, with millimetre accuracy, the affected person’s place whereas the radiotherapy is being delivered.
A correction may be made if the affected person strikes through the therapy, growing the accuracy of the radiotherapy. The precision of the system will permit superior strategies to develop into accessible for sufferers at CUH, who will not have to journey for such therapies.
The surface-guided know-how, known as AlignRT, can also be used for deep-inspiration breath maintain radiotherapy, the place the affected person holds their breath throughout therapy.
This permits radiation to be delivered whereas limiting radiation publicity to the center and lungs, a way predominantly used for left-sided breast most cancers therapy.
Claire Keating, Radiotherapy Providers Supervisor at CUH, stated they have been delighted to be the primary public hospital in Eire to supply surface-guided, tattoo-less radiotherapy to breast most cancers sufferers. She added that tattoo-less radiotherapy is to develop into accessible for all affected person cohorts over the approaching months
Help Most cancers Therapy Charity raised funds of slightly below €1 million to buy the brand new know-how.
