RaySearch receives PMH contract for new adaptive radiation therapy solution

RaySearch Laboratories AB (STO:RAYB) has been awarded a contract for a new adaptive radiation therapy solution at Princess Margaret Hospital (PMH) in Toronto, Canada. This means that RaySearch will deliver its treatment planning system RayStation® to PMH where it will be used as the primary treatment planning tool for adaptive radiation therapy.

PMH is a top cancer centre devoted exclusively to cancer research, treatment and education, and is part of the University Health Network (UHN) - a research and teaching hospital of the University of Toronto. PMH has achieved an international reputation as a global leader in the fight against cancer and is considered one of the top comprehensive cancer treatment and research centers in the world. The hospital has 130 patient beds and 17 radiation treatment machines making PMH the largest radiation treatment centre in Canada and one of the largest treatment facilities in the world serving more than 10,000 new patients every year.

PMH is widely recognized as the pioneering research institution in the field of image-guided and adaptive radiation therapy. In traditional radiation therapy, a month-long treatment course is based on disease extent defined by images generated before the first treatment. However, over the course of treatment, changes can occur with regard to the shape and position of both the tumor and the surrounding healthy tissues, resulting in a risk that healthy tissue is damaged unnecessarily or that the tumor does not receive a sufficient dose of radiation. Adaptive radiation therapy uses repeated imaging to monitor the changes in the patient's anatomy and with sophisticated software tools these changes are taken into account to continuously adapt the treatment. This has significant potential to further increase tumor control and at the same time reduce the risk of side effects.

RaySearch and PMH have a long-standing research collaboration focused on strategies and tools for adaptive radiation therapy. The relationship was further expanded in 2011 when RaySearch licensed groundbreaking technology for adaptive therapy from PMH for integration in RaySearch's RayStation® treatment planning system. With PMH's purchase of RayStation®, the knowledge accumulated over these years will be put to clinical use as PMH will implement adaptive therapy on a broad scale and use RayStation® as its primary tool to monitor and adapt radiation treatments during the treatment course.

"The RaySearch solution is key to implementing our personalized cancer medicine agenda by offering the means to adapt the treatment to anatomical and functional changes during the course of radiation therapy", says Dr. Mary Gospodarowicz, Chief, Radiation Medicine Program and Medical Director, the PMH Cancer Program.

"Next generation systems, such as RayStation®, allow us to monitor the dose delivered to the patient at a level that is unprecedented. This technology enables personalized cancer medicine, assures quality of care, and furthers our understanding of the capabilities of radiation therapy", states Dr. David Jaffray, Head of Radiation Physics at PMH.

Johan Löf, CEO of RaySearch, says: "For us it has been a privilege to collaborate for more than seven years with PMH's excellent research team led by Professor Jaffray to create tools and strategies for adaptive radiation therapy. We are very proud to now be part of the clinical introduction of these advanced treatment techniques at PMH. This is a major milestone for RaySearch, but more importantly, I believe that the introduction of adaptive therapy marks the start of a new phase in the evolution of radiation therapy. This treatment paradigm has great potential to further improve cancer care."

The order is for 25 RayStation® systems for adaptive radiation therapy and 25 systems for plan evaluation. The installation process will commence in March with the objective to have the systems fully operational during the summer.

Marc Mlyn, President of RaySearch Americas adds: "We are excited to have the opportunity to work with the staff at Princess Margaret Hospital to implement RayStation®. We are confident that RayStation® will become an important, if not central, part of the overall care cycle for patients undergoing all types of radiation therapy. We firmly believe that PMH will help us drive the product in directions that will enhance the clinical effectiveness of these technologies."