Lack of trained staff and technical support exposes patients to increased risk of cancer p...( is placed on the patient's head to hol...),Health

is placed on the patient's head to hold it in position and limiting movement to allow precise targeting. The physician scans the patient to establish the exact position of the malignant (or benign) abnormalities. To precisely define the intracranial target, an MRI scan is made with the same stereotactic frame and fused with the CT-scan. The treatment plan is worked out with computers to determine the direction of the beam and time of radiation exposure.

Teleconferencing has been introduced to speed up the process of peer review of IMRT and SRT treatment plans. Creating a communication link between departments a few miles apart, it incorporates broadband technology that permits fast transmission with interactive means of modifying data.

Professor Levendag warned: "With shortage of resources, the potential increase in waiting times might even become prohibitive in introducing this type of sophistication in the treatment routine of a department".

These "sacred cows of high-technology" in radiation therapy seemed worth the effort, he argued, but would have to be monitored carefully. Patients in the Netherlands were already waiting on average for three or four weeks for radiation therapy to begin.

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Contact: Maria Maneiro
Maria@fecs.be
351-21-892-1818
Federation of European Cancer Societies
24-Oct-2001

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