Cape Town - Life Vincent Pallotti Hospital’s Life Oncology unit made history when it launched the Ethos™ radiotherapy cancer treatment system on Tuesday - a first in Sub-Saharan Africa.
The new technology will allow specialists to treat cancer patients with accurate, precision techniques.
Ethos™ radiotherapy system treats patients with cervical, rectum, lung and prostate cancer.
In time, other cancers are hoped to be included in the treatment programme, the hospital said.
Life Healthcare’s Chief Medical Officer, Dr Louis Kathan, said adaptive therapy provided the ability to adapt the treatment plan based on tumour and anatomical changes.
“The goal is to better target the tumour, reduce radiation dose of healthy tissue, and potentially improve overall outcomes. The system allows us to use artificial intelligence (AI) to adapt to a patient’s anatomy. This allows us to make decisions more efficiently on a daily basis based on each patient’s individual needs.”
The ability of the machine to deliver on-couch adaptive treatment will put the patient at the centre of care.
Radiation therapy unit manager at Life Vincent Pallotti Hospital, Kulthum Ismail, said clinicians globally have waited for the day when they have the ability to adapt radiotherapy treatments to changes in patient anatomy.
“The Ethos™ radiotherapy adaptive technology allows the treatment plan to be adjusted daily, in real-time and the treatment to be planned and administered, all within 20 to 30 minutes,” said Ismail.
Life Healthcare’s Chief Executive Officer Adam Pyle said this was their way of navigating their patients into the future of oncology care.
Life Healthcare Group Chief Executive Pete Wharton-Hood said the Group’s aspiration to be a leading cancer care provider had taken a substantial step forward with the expansion of the Life Oncology unit at Life Vincent Pallotti Hospital in Cape Town.
Cape Times