Two sites in Europe are using Stockholm-based radiation oncology firm Elekta's Volumetric Modulated Arc Therapy (VMAT) technology for clinical treatment.
VMAT recently received regulatory clearance for use at the Royal Marsden Hospital in Sutton, U.K., and General Hospital Vienna in Austria to treat cancer.
VMAT has not yet received 510(k) clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
VMAT technology is designed to continuously irradiate a tumor while the source of the beam is rotated around the patient in single or multiple arcs. By simultaneously controlling gantry position, gantry speed, leaves of the multileaf collimator, collimator angle, and dose rate, a highly conformal dose distribution is created in less time than other treatment techniques.
A treatment session can take five minutes or less, including 3D imaging to secure the location of the target.
Related Reading
Elekta moves to acquire planning firm CMS, January 8, 2008
CMS nets FDA OK for Monaco, October 16, 2007
Elekta to introduce new VMAT at ASTRO show, October 18, 2007
Elekta MEG system in new U.K. facility, October 12, 2007
Elekta receives Austrian contract, September 28, 2007
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