Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare has acquired a groundbreaking radiation therapy treatment system, in use at only ten cancer treatments centers in the U.S. Called Elekta Unity, the technology monitors a patient's movement while simultaneously delivering targeted radiation therapy to cancerous tumors and tumor beds.
"The single bed equipment pairs magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) with radiation therapy, letting clinicians start and stop cancer treatment in real time, adjusting as the patient moves and breathes and as organs shift inside the body," said Kathleen Forbes, MD, executive vice president of MLH's Academic Group, which includes Methodist University Hospital and Le Bonheur Children's Hospital. "Because of the exact precision, healthy tissues surrounding the tumor avoid unnecessary radiation exposure."
The Methodist Cancer Institute at Methodist University Hospital in the Memphis medical district is only cancer center in the Mid-South to offer cancer treatment on the Elekta Unity system for soft tissue cancers like brain, breast, gynecologic, head and neck, prostate and gastrointestinal cancers including pancreatic and liver cancers.
"Our ultimate goal is to provide every patient with innovative, effective, high quality and safe care so they can return to live their best lives," said Forbes. "Using the Elekta Unity on hard-to-treat cancers, we can minimize treatment-related side effects and reduce a patient's overall treatment schedule."
