New Belfast Cancer Center Begins Offering Patients Advanced Radiation Therapy Treatments | Varian

{ "pageType": "news-article", "title": "New Belfast Cancer Center Begins Offering Patients Advanced Radiation Therapy Treatments", "articleDate": "23. May 2006", "introText": "", "category": "Oncology" }

New Belfast Cancer Center Begins Offering Patients Advanced Radiation Therapy Treatments

Belfast, Northern Ireland, May 23rd 2006 – A new cancer center equipped with eight modern medical linear accelerators from Varian Medical Systems has begun offering patients advanced radiation therapy treatments. Belfast City Hospital’s new Cancer Center is focusing on more effective treatments that concentrate radiation doses on tumors while protecting surrounding healthy tissues.

Initial treatments are focused on 3D conformal radiotherapy and doctors at the new center say they are planning to implement an intensity modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) program for even more precise treatments in the near future. The Center is currently involved in a number of national clinical trials and other research projects will be developed over time.

“This important project reflects our commitment to providing cancer patients with the very best radiotherapy treatment in the world,‿ says Alistair Brown, director of operational support at Belfast City Hospital Trust.

“This center is intended to be a purpose built environment that offers a number of advantages including the opportunity to develop further treatment options. As well as increased capacity, the new facility has full networking between the hospital’s patient administrative system, radiology information system, picture archive and VARiSVision information management system.‿

Walter Frei, head of Varian’s Oncology Systems business in Europe, said, “This marvellous new center means more cancer patients will be treated with more modern equipment, enabling them to benefit from significant recent advances in radiotherapy treatment. It’s a flagship center for Northern Ireland and we are delighted to have been selected to equip such a prestigious project.‿

In addition to eight Clinac® linear accelerators – machines which deliver the treatment – Varian has also supplied an Acuity™ device for simulating, verifying and planning radiotherapy treatments, and VARiSVision™ information management and imaging software.

The new Center, replacing the city’s ageing Belvoir Park Hospital that closed at the end of March, has been built under a PFI agreement with Partners in Healthcare Technologies (PHT). The new facility serves a catchment population of 1.7 million and is currently treating 250 patients per day. It expects to treat more than 2,600 new radiotherapy patients each year.

Editorial contact: Neil Madle, Varian Medical Systems, +44 7786 526068, neil.madle@varian.com

ABOUT VARIAN MEDICAL SYSTEMS
Varian Medical Systems, Inc., of Palo Alto, California is the world's leading manufacturer of medical technology for treating cancer with radiotherapy and neurological conditions with radiosurgery. The company is also a premier supplier of X-ray tubes and flat-panel digital subsystems for imaging in medical, scientific, and industrial applications. Varian Medical Systems employs approximately 3,600 people who are located at manufacturing sites in North America and Europe and in its 56 sales and support offices around the world. In Europe, the company operates manufacturing and engineering centers in Baden (Switzerland), Crawley (England), Haan (Germany), Helsinki (Finland) and Toulouse (France) and has headquarters for Europe, Middle East, India and Africa (EMEA) based in Zug, Switzerland.Additional information is available on the company's web site at http://www.varian.com/.