Brachytherapy Treatment Planning Technology Speeds Calculation Times

New brachytherapy technology enables more effective dose calculation at comparatively high speeds. The system also enables clinicians to rapidly calculate patient dose with high level of precision.

Varian Medical Systems, Inc. (Palo Altos, CA, USA) reported that it has received U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) 510(k) clearance for the Acuros capability offered initially in its brachytherapy treatment planning system. The Acuros clearance was awarded as part of the Eclipse treatment planning system.

"BrachyVision Acuros calculation times tend to average between three and eight minutes depending on the applicator used,” said Hosea Mitchell, head of Varian's brachytherapy business unit. "By comparison, the same calculations could take hours or days using the standard Monte Carlo method. Securing 510(k) clearance is an important milestone in making this exciting new planning system available to brachytherapy practitioners. Acuros represents a major step forward in terms of accuracy with timeframes that were previously thought unimaginable. It will help clinicians make better decisions about dose to their patients and further their knowledge to make treatments more accurate.”

Varian is working exclusively with Transpire, Inc. (Gig Harbor, WA, USA), developers of Acuros, to bring the benefits of this fast and precise calculation method to the radiation oncology field. Varian Medical Systems is currently working to integrate the Acuros module into its Eclipse product for external beam radiotherapy treatment planning. BrachyVision Acuros will be among the products on display at the annual meeting of the American Association of Physicists in Medicine (AAPM) at Anaheim, CA, USA, from July 26-30, 2009.

Varian Medical Systems is a world-leading manufacturer of medical devices and software for treating cancer and other medical conditions with radiotherapy, radiosurgery, proton therapy, and brachytherapy. The company supplies informatics software for managing comprehensive cancer clinics, radiotherapy centers, and medical oncology practices.

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Varian Medical Systems
Transpire