IBA completes proton therapy installation in record time of nine months

LOUVAIN-LA-NEUVE, 1 March 2018 – IBA (Ion Beam Applications S.A.), the world’s leading provider of proton therapy solutions for the treatment of cancer, and Proton Partners International, announce today that they have completed testing of the UK’s first high energy proton beam machine on 16 February at the Rutherford Cancer Centre in Newport, South Wales. Following a record nine month installation programme, the center plans to treat the first patients with its Proteus®ONE solution in March.

Leveraging its longstanding expertise, IBA has again demonstrated its superiority in installing proton therapy systems and set a new installation record of nine months since synchro-cyclotron delivery. This new global record further increases accessibility to proton therapy for cancer patients in the UK while IBA’s closest competitor will take at least 50% more time for the installation in its center. It demonstrates IBA’s speed of delivery from contract signature to first treatment, and secures the customers’ investment as they can deliver treatment in line with their business plan.

The single room Proteus®ONE proton beam therapy solution, installed and maintained by IBA, is the industry’s only truly compact image-guided IMPT proton therapy system. It has a unique open gantry environment designed to ease the treatment workflow of the radiation therapists and to optimize the patient experience by providing a comfortable and calming environment. Proteus®ONE also offers the most advanced proton therapy technology on the market as it combines pencil beam scanning with 3-D cone beam computed tomography large field of view for true volumetric imaging at isocenter. Its compact design makes it easy to install, integrate, operate, and finance.

Olivier Legrain, Chief Executive Officer of IBA, commented: “We are delighted that we have been able to work with Proton Partners International and the Rutherford Cancer Centre to successfully make proton therapy available for cancer patients in the UK for the first time. By installing this equipment in only nine months we have further demonstrated that IBA is the leading proton therapy company in combining cutting-edge proton therapy technology with market leading delivery for the benefit of patients.”

Mike Moran, Chief Executive Officer of Proton Partners International, added: “We are thrilled that the UK’s first proton beam therapy system has been approved for treatment at our Rutherford Cancer Centre in Newport. Through working with IBA we have ensured that our centers are installed with the latest cancer technology in the fastest way possible for the benefits of patients. We are extremely proud to be at the forefront of delivering this innovative cancer treatment.”

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Mevion receives 510(k) clearance for HYPERSCAN pencil beam scanning

LITTLETON, MASS., 3 January 2018 – Mevion Medical Systems has received FDA 510(k) clearance for the MEVION S250i Proton Therapy System®including HYPERSCAN™ pencil beam scanning (PBS) technology. HYPERSCAN PBS introduces novel energy layer switching and automated collimation systems. These advantages enable the S250i™ system to deliver faster, sharper, and more robust PBS proton radiation treatments.

“The S250i system represents the next generation of intensity modulated proton therapy (IMPT) delivered in the most compact proton therapy platform,” said Joseph Jachinowski, CEO of Mevion Medical Systems. “We are proud that the MEVION S250i system now has received both FDA clearance and CE mark. This is a very important milestone in our efforts to make precision proton therapy available to more patients in the fight against cancer.”

Next Generation Intensity Modulated Proton Therapy (IMPT) 

The MEVION S250i™ system is a compact proton therapy system capable of delivering conformal radiation therapy treatments using HYPERSCAN pencil beam scanning technology. The design of HYPERSCAN PBS technology overcomes clinical challenges that were previously faced by first generation PBS systems. Pencil beam scanning systems shape the delivered radiation dose by “painting” tumors spot-by-spot and layer-by-layer with sub-atomic particles. Prior to HYPERSCAN PBS, scanning proton systems struggled with delivery speed. Long delivery times can undermine the high precision of the treatment due to the target tumor shifting under normal organ motion such as breathing.

HYPERSCAN PBS uses a compact beam delivery path reducing delivery times to less than 5 seconds for some fields. This “hyper-fast” treatment delivery reduces treatment errors due to the sensitivity to motion that current PBS technologies face when treating tumors affected by organ motion. In addition, HYPERSCAN PBS utilizes, the Adaptive Aperture™ proton multi-leaf collimator (pMLC)  This technology uses a robotically controlled collimation system, capable of trimming the edges of the beam at every layer of delivery. This capability delivers up to a three times sharper drop off in radiation at the delivery field edge. This improves sparing of healthy tissue and limits unnecessary radiation to sensitive locations.

World’s First HYPERSCAN PBS Installation 

MedStar Georgetown University Hospital in Washington, D.C. will be the first hospital in the world to offer this latest generation of HYPERSCAN PBS once final onsite testing is completed this month.

“We are excited to be not only the first and only proton therapy system in the Washington, D.C. area, but also the first in the world to offer these advanced proton therapy treatment capabilities to our patients and community. Currently, patients who seek proton therapy need to leave the metropolitan D.C. area, which can be a significant burden on families,” said Brian T. Collins, MD, clinical director of MedStar Georgetown Proton Therapy Center. “We will now be delivering advanced proton therapy, fully integrated into our broad set of comprehensive cancer care offerings. This is critical to the patients we serve.”

Built on Leading Compact Proton Therapy Technology 

The MEVION S250i system is based on Mevion’s high efficiency, low financial risk S250™ Series platform. The core technology of the S250 Series is the world’s only gantry mounted superconducting synchrocyclotron. This compact, fully integrated platform has years of successful clinical experience and proven financial viability. While proton therapy has clear dosimetric advantages, the costs of early systems has been a significant barrier to adoption. The MEVION S250i reduces this barrier through lower capital costs, reduced operating costs, and increased treatment throughput. Mevion customers have achieved the fastest per-room patient ramp-up in the history of proton therapy. Demonstrating that compact proton therapy is a viable option for any size cancer center is core to Mevion’s mission of making proton therapy accessible to as many patients as possible.

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RaySearch receives first order for RayCare oncology infomation system

17 January 2018 – Anderson Regional Cancer Center (ARCC) in Meridian, Mississippi, USA, has placed the first order for RayCare*, a next-generation oncology information system (OIS). RayCare is an innovative system designed to support comprehensive cancer care. It integrates seamlessly with the RayStation treatment planning system, but that’s just the start – RayCare will connect all the oncology disciplines, enabling users to fluidly coordinate tasks and ensure optimal use of resources.

Over subsequent releases, RayCare will evolve into a machine learning OIS with unique capabilities to coordinate oncology tasks, supporting comprehensive cancer care organized around each patient’s needs. Many cancer patients receive a combination of treatment types, driving the need for combined workflows for radiation therapy, chemotherapy and surgery.

ARCC decided to map out a future for their clinical workflows that would support advanced technology and data driven decision making. They determined that the best approach would be to move to a new treatment planning system and a new oncology information system that together would support their linacs and TomoTherapy systems, in order to have a unified platform for planning, treatment and assessment.

Paul King, Chief Medical Physicist, says: “We evaluated all the leading systems and were extremely impressed by the possibilities of RayCare. It delivers on everything we were looking for. Getting all of these pieces integrated together will help us tremendously. RaySearch is an innovator with the leading technology in this area and I have great confidence in their ability to meet our needs into the future. We will keep exploring the cutting-edge of technology in order to secure the best possible care for our patients. RayCare will help us achieve this aim.”

Dr. Scott Anderson, Radiation Oncologist and Medical Director, says: “We find ourselves in the position that we are at a decision point where we can stay static in a satisfactory status quo, or we can move into what will be the standard in the future. We look forward to working with RaySearch Laboratories to shape the future of longitudinal cancer care. Survivorship and tracking patients long term will be the benchmarks of cancer care moving forward. This new system that is being developed will give us better tools to do so.”

Johan Löf, CEO of RaySearch, says: “I am delighted by this first RayCare order and very excited about helping ARCC achieve an efficient, integrated system for the future. RayCare is fundamentally different compared to other OIS systems, and we have invested a great deal of time and effort into creating something that will truly change the way that cancer is treated. Our goal is to advance cancer treatment with high-performance tools that combine treatment planning, workflow and data management, resource optimization, machine learning and follow-up in an effective way.”

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