New radiotherapy technology will help N.S. cancer doctors treat disease more precisely

Nova Scotia's leading cancer doctor says a new advanced radiotherapy cancer care system will transform patient care by improving the precision of radiotherapy treatments and reduce the number of necessary cancer treatments.

"We can do it, it's working, and patients will benefit from it," Dr. Helmut Hollenhorst, Senior Medical Director with the Nova Scotia Cancer Care Program.

Nova Scotia will spend $20 million over the next five years to install three Ethos Therapy systems with HyperSight imagining solutions, which Hollenhorst called the first of its kind in cancer treatment technology.

The first Ethos machine is already set up at the QEII hospital and has undergone a 30-day patient trial, where doctors say the HypersSight technology can generate quick and high-quality images of a patient's cancer spot in just six seconds.

HyperSights rapid imaging gives doctors a precise target area, allowing an increased radiation dose to the precise tumour site, which shrinks the treatment area and protects healthy tissue and other organs around the cancer site.

"We had the privilege to test and try it and bring it to fruition and to advance it so all Nova Scotians can benefit from this type of treatment," he said. "We can deliver the same results in a shorter amount of time."

The Ethos System is considered the future in cancer radiation treatments and will eventually replace all other conventional machines in use here, says Dr. James Robar, Chief of Medical Physics for Nova Scotia Health.

"Imagine you have a patient who would normally require 20 daily fractions (treatments)," said Robar. "Technology like this can get it down, for some indications, down to four or five."

Over the next five years, Nova Scotia will add two more Ethos machines at the QEII Health Sciences Cancer Care Centre.

The cancer care advancement is welcomed by the Canadian Cancer Society, whose latest statistics show that Nova Scotia is leading the country in the prevalence of cancer cases.

"The notion of reducing treatments from 20 days down to five is transformational,” said Heather Mulligan, Canadian Cancer Society’s manager of advocacy for Atlantic Canada. “It does mean that with a precision based tool, more healthy tissue survives, and there's a variety of benefits to the system."

The first treatments with the new cancer care system begin in January 

For more Nova Scotia news visit our dedicated provincial page.