Elekta Synergy system with Agility 160-leaf MLC now available at Radboud

The first of three newly acquired Elekta (STO:EKTAB) Synergy® treatment systems equipped with Agility™ 160-leaf multi-leaf collimator (MLC) is now up and running clinically at Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Center - making the clinic the first in the Netherlands to use Agility. The first patient, a 48-year-old woman, was treated on September 10 and clinicians have treated 70 additional patients since then, encompassing a wide range of cancers.

"Our first experiences with Agility have gone perfectly - the high leaf speed of Agility has made beam delivery speed much faster, especially with IMRT [Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy] plans," says René Monshouwer, Ph.D., Clinical Physicist at Radboud. "And, comparing the system with Agility to one without Agility, the leaf transmission is lower."

Dr. Monshouwer adds that the high resolution leaves of Agility and low transmission will help Radboud begin using Agility in stereotactic treatments in the next few months.

"These are more complex treatments involving small structures in close proximity to organs-at-risk, so we expect Agility to benefit those treatments," he says. "Then, once we switch from IMRT to Volumetric Modulated Arc Therapy [VMAT] for those cases, we will see a big advance in the quality and speed of treatment."

Elekta reinvented beam shaping, creating a solution that boasts leaf speeds that are twice as fast as conventional devices. The 160 5 mm leaves can interdigitate to enable treatment of island targets and multiple targets in a single session, and optical leaf positioning technology improves accuracy and increases the reliability and seamlessness of beam shaping. The exceptionally low leaf transmission of less than 0.5 percent enhances treatment delivery while reducing integral dose. The integrated whole results in a sophisticated multi-functional beam-shaping solution.

Two of the three Elekta Synergy systems that Radboud recently acquired will come equipped with Agility as well, a second system for the Nijmegen satellite facility and one for a satellite clinic in Boxmeer, the former becoming clinically operational in November 2012. The Synergy systems with Agility join four other existing Elekta linear accelerators at Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Center. At least one of the systems in Radboud also will be upgraded to Agility.