Advanced high precision radiation to treat cancer tumors now at Mazumdar Shaw Medical Center

Enarada,Bangalore, June 25, 2013:

Mazumdar Shaw Cancer Center at NH Health City, Bangalore has introduced the latest global technique ‘High Precision Radiotherapy’.

Radiotherapy will treat radiosensitive cancerous and non-cancerous diseases like thyroid cancer and some blood disorders. Radiotherapy helps to shrink tumors by destroying the diseased cells without affecting the normal cells.

CT scans also use a dose of radiation to visualise and diagnose various health conditions. While the conventional radiotherapy is a form of external beam radiation that delivers a fraction of the complete radiation dose to shrink or destroy the cancer tumors, a high precision radiotherapy delivers highly targeted treatment to blast the tumor and avoid the healthy tissues.

Conventional radiotherapy cannot save normal cells and side effects are more. Beyond an extent radiation dose cannot be increased and resistant cancer tumor cells will survive. ‘High precision radiation techniques are 1.5-2 times costlier than the conventional technique, but the side effects are less and ensure accuracy and better quality of life.

Treating about 10-15 cases in a month using the high precision technology, Dr. Sandip Jain, Radiation Oncologist, Mazumdar Shaw Cancer Center, explained, “At Mazumdar Shaw Cancer Center at NH Health City, our main focus is on safety and accuracy of treatment of the patient. In an era of globalisation, whatever research happens in western countries, it reaches India within one year. Presently, this technology is the latest globally. We have successfully treated more than 1,800 patients till date.”

To treat various types of cancerous and non-cancerous diseases, there are three different advanced procedures that are used with the help of radiation therapy.

To effectively destroy small tumors, a computerized imaging is used for accuracy (Stereotactic Radiation Therapy).

Another procedure is a new paradigm shift in radiation therapy, that allows the radiation dose to match up more precisely to the three dimensional shape of the tumor (Intensity-Modulated Radiation Therapy).

To ensure that the radiation is being delivered to the intended region in millimeter accuracy, a CT scanner is also used for radiation (Image Guided Radiotherapy).

The procedure is attempted in various tumor types, and significant promise is shown in ‘Head Neck and Brain tumors’. Evolution of technology for radiation delivery has made an attempt to increase safety and accuracy.

Dr Jain further elaborates, “Historically, there is skepticism in the minds of people about the safety of radiotherapy which leads to fear and non-compliance to the treatment, by not taking the right decision at the right time. Awareness needs to be created about the safety of high precision radiotherapy to alleviate fears.”