Nuclear Oncology

Archive for the ‘Cancer Therapy’ Category

At the beginning of each session of radiotherapy, the patient was positioned carefully guided by skin marks that define the treatment area. Devices can be used to help the patient maintain the correct position. Pictures are then taken using the imaging equipment incorporated into the radiation delivery machine or mounted on the treatment room.

The physician then reviews the images and compares them with those taken during the simulation. You may reposition the patient and to take additional pictures. After having made any prescriptions in the treatment plan and the positioning of the patient, then radiation therapy is delivered.

The image guidance process can add up to five minutes each session Read the rest of this entry »

Image Guided Radiotherapy (IGRT) is the frequent use of images taken during a course of radiotherapy to improve the precision and accuracy of treatment delivery.

In IGRT, machines that deliver radiation, a linear accelerator, are equipped with imaging technology for the doctor to take pictures of the tumor immediately before or even during the time of delivery of radiation, when the patient is placed on treatment table. Using specialized computer software, these images are then compared with those taken during the simulation. Then make any necessary gradations in the position of the patient and / or the beams of radiation to target radiation to the tumor more accurately and avoid the surrounding healthy tissue.

Computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), positron emission tomography (PET), ultrasound (U.S.) and X-ray images can be used for IGRT.

IGRT is used to treat tumors in areas of the body prone to movement, such as the lungs (affected by breathing), and prostate, and tumors located near critical organs and tissues. Often used in conjunction with intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT), an advanced mode of high precision radiotherapy using X-ray accelerators to deliver computer-controlled precise radiation doses to a malignant tumor or specific areas within the tumor. See the page on IMRT for details. Read the rest of this entry »