Innovative Cancer Institute, a cancer center in Miami, announced that it installed an Edge™ system from Varian Medical Systems, for treating cancer and other conditions with high-precision, non-invasive radiosurgery.
“This state-of-the-art system will enable us to offer patients a fast, effective surgical option without an incision or the need to recover in a hospital setting,” said Dr. Beatriz Amendola, Medical Director. “Its knifelike beam can accurately target tumors of the brain, spine, and lung, even in areas that are typically difficult to reach surgically.”
As a non-invasive option, radiosurgery utilization has been growing steadily over the last decade for the treatment of cancer and other conditions, and predictions are that it will continue to grow as research accrues about the benefits to patients. Radiosurgery involves the use of sophisticated technology to ablate tumors or other abnormalities with high-energy X-rays while minimizing exposure of surrounding healthy tissue.
The Edge radiosurgery system delivers high-intensity treatments with surgical precision. It utilizes advanced imaging as well as real-time motion tracking technologies to keep treatments focused on the targeted tumor or abnormality. Using the Edge system, clinicians can deliver radiosurgery
procedures with sub-millimeter accuracy. Treatments are completed typically in about fifteen minutes, meaning that patients are in and out of the treatment center in just about an hour.
“Radiosurgery can be appropriate for many early-stage cancers and metastases, including tumors of the brain, spine, lung and other areas of the body,” said Dr. Amendola. “Better diagnostic tools are making it possible for us to see tumors much earlier, and radiosurgery is often an ideal approach for attacking these tumors without the use of conventional surgery.”
