Developing a world first radiation system to ensure the safe delivery of radiation doses to patients
Background
Radiation therapy is used to treat 40% of cancer patients in Australia. The problem with current therapy is that during treatment, the tumours are moving. Professor Peter Metcalfe and his team have found that they can follow the tumour with a new radiation machine, called the MRI-linac, but it is impossible to check whether the radiation dose is correct and safe for the patient.
The research
To solve this problem, the team is perfecting a new radiation dosimetry system that could be operated with the MRI-linac. The new system’s detector acts as a surrogate for the cancer, which will be imaged and treated as it moves in the body. The clinical sites likely to benefit from MRI-linac are those that need delicate image guidance. These sites are close to critical organs where the patient’s breathing can affect the targeting, including the lung, pancreas, prostate and liver.
The impact
This world first radiation system will enable the safe delivery of radiation dose to cancer patients treated with the MRI-linac.