CHU Liège Radiation Therapy runs the largest radiation-oncology centre in Belgium, with around 2600 patients treated annually on a suite of five radiation-therapy systems. The first phase of the upgrade will see the installation of Elekta Synergy S, an image-guided, robotic digital linear accelerator that integrates 3D image guidance with highly conformal radiation delivery.
In parallel, Elekta will upgrade the information management system at CHU Liège to MOSAIQ, its image-enabled electronic medical records system. MOSAIQ is specifically adapted for oncology with fully integrated department management features such as scheduling, management reports, analysis, image storage and retrieval.
Philippe Coucke, head of the radiation therapy department at CHU Liège, reckons the 3D X-ray imaging capability and high-resolution beam shaping of Synergy S "will be of great advantage, specifically for patients with tumours close to critical organs".
He added: "We are also excited about installing MOSAIQ, connecting treatment equipment from several different vendors into one network. What this boils down to is that doctors and nurses can spend less time with administration and more time with patients."
At the recent ASTRO annual meeting in Los Angeles, CA, Elekta announced Elekta Infinity, a work-in-progress digital linac optimized for volumetric intensity-modulated arc therapy (VMAT), a rapid IMRT treatment that's delivered in single or multiple arcs.
According to the vendor's press statement, "Elekta Infinity allows for a total VMAT treatment session in no more than five minutes, including true VolumeView 3D cone-beam images in three minutes and two minutes of highly conformal arc delivery of radiation."