Memorial Medical Center invests in higher level of cancer treatment

Memorial Medical Center of Modesto has taken its cancer treatment to a higher level, with a linear accelerator that delivers high doses of cancer-killing radiation with precision.

The TrueBeam accelerator, made by Varian Medical Systems of Palo Alto, has become a workhorse at Memorial for treating cancers of the lung; breast; head and neck; prostate; colon; and skin.

Doctors in the hospital’s radiation oncology department said the therapy is faster and more accurate. Some treatments that once took more than an hour are done in five minutes.

“It’s a sharper saw; it’s a faster hammer,” said Dr. J. Alex Garcia-Young, a radiation oncologist at the hospital.

Memorial spent about $5 million to purchase the system and build the treatment vault, which went into operation in January 2014. With the reduced time for treatment, the department is able to perform 15 to 30 procedures each day.

No cutting or sawing is done with this type of cancer therapy. The patient lays on a table, with soft music playing, as the machine rotates around the patient and delivers a radiation beam at the best angles for treating the tumor.

Radiation therapy disrupts cancer cells and stops them from dividing. The treatment may be used to shrink tumors before surgery, eliminate them or keep cancer from recurring.

Some patients treated with the linear accelerator are too old or sick to tolerate surgery to remove cancer from their bodies, staff said.

Garcia-Young described the linear accelerator as a high-voltage electron gun. It shoots electrons at a metal target at almost the speed of light and then directs the radioactive beam through a collimator. The collimator’s tungsten leaves, which block the atomic particles, move into place to shape the beam so it matches the outline of the tumor.

As the radiation beam attacks the cancer, an imaging system guides the therapy to prevent damage to surrounding tissue and organs.

“It’s a smarter machine; it has more safeguards in place,” Garcia-Young said. “It allows us to do the therapy a lot more safely.”

Before the procedure, the lead door to the treatment vault is closed and the technology is guided from a control room. A patient lying on the table has a view of blue sky and blossoms on the ceiling, and is given a choice of relaxing music.

A mask covering the head and neck is specially made for each patient. It keeps the person still during the procedure.

Staff members place a strong emphasis on personal attention for patients who are trying to beat cancer.

“Most of the patients are anxious when they come in,” department manager Kathleen Reams said. “They become like family as they spend time here and get to know us.”

Three physicists are employed for quality assurance testing of the linear accelerator to make sure it works as intended. Next year, the hospital could start using another capability for lung cancer patients.

A patient lying still for treatment continues to breathe, which causes any tumor in the lower part of the lung to move, said Dr. Chris Neville, medical director of radiation oncology. The machine has a “gating” technology that can coordinate the treatment with the patient’s breathing, enabling the radiation beam to stay on target.

There are pros and cons to the gating technology, but the hospital plans to start using the option next spring, Neville said.

Memorial has an oncology massage therapist to help patients deal with the stress of cancer treatment. Therapist Tammy Scranton said a massage before or after radiation treatment has been shown to produce benefits such as reducing anxiety, helping patients breathe easier and lowering their blood pressure.

This story was originally published August 28, 2015 at 7:56 PM with the headline "Memorial Medical Center invests in higher level of cancer treatment."