Castle Hill Hospital optimises cancer pathways with integrated radiotherapy planning scan and treatment workflows
Radiotherapy treatment and planning scan facilities have been upgraded at Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust with Halcyon radiotherapy systems from Varian, a Siemens Healthineers company, and Somatom go.Open Pro CT systems from Siemens Healthineers. The introduction of the new equipment at Castle Hill Hospital marks the launch of an integrated approach to cancer care in Hull.
Castle Hill Hospital is home to the Queen’s Centre, which treats a broad range of cancer patients. Following the initial installation of a Halcyon radiotherapy system, a second was added to facilitate streamlined radiotherapy delivery, achieving results quickly and quietly, while improving the patient experience. The addition of the Somatom go.Open Pro CT systems bolsters radiotherapy CT simulation planning provision while facilitating diagnostic scanning for years to come.
“Our experience with the new equipment from Varian and Siemens Healthineers has been positive so far,” said principal physicist Carl Horsfield. “The Somatom go.Open Pro CT systems have some significant technological improvements on our previous scanners and the ability to automatically tailor exposures for individual patients, for example changes in breathing rate, should improve both accuracy and efficiency. The Halcyon radiotherapy systems should also offer efficiency benefits – contributing to more streamlined treatment delivery. They are less imposing than a conventional C-arm linac as the moving parts are enclosed within the gantry, helping to improve the patient experience.”
Engineered to simplify and enhance image-guided volumetric IMRT, the Halcyon radiotherapy system enables rapid treatment delivery. Workflow efficiency is optimised to allow radiographers more time at the patient’s side, while the quiet, smooth motion is designed to improve the patient experience. Castle Hill Hospital is able to streamline treatment for less complex cases, helping to support shorter treatment times and increased patient throughput. In addition, using Halcyon clinically has reduced energy consumption from 4,500kWh to 1,200kWh a month, supporting the trust as it strives towards becoming carbon neutral.
Selected to help facilitate both diagnostics and radiotherapy planning, two Somatom go.Open Pro CT systems were implemented to boost capacity at the hospital. The 128-slice scanners are equipped with Direct i4D and DirectORGANS technology from Siemens Healthineers to facilitate real-time, intelligent adaptation to patient breathing, and OAR contouring. These features will help to expand capabilities at Castle Hill Hospital, allowing accurate imaging of moving targets for improved planning, while speeding up time-consuming contouring processes and reducing demand on clinicians.
The integration of the radiotherapy and CT systems with the Aria oncology information system in place at the hospital allows comprehensive patient information management, optimised connectivity and integrated imaging.
Picture: Varian production team leader Luke Speakman, senior hardware installation engineer Mike Jones, electronic test technicians Ian Harland and Max Coleman with the Halcyon radiotherapy system.
Published on page 2 of the June 2022 issue of RAD Magazine.