Radiation Oncology Technology

Specializing In The Diagnosis And Treatment Of Cancer

New radiation oncology technologies offer continual improvement in the diagnosis and treatment of cancer and other diseases. At the Sibley Cancer Center in Washington DC we are able to help patients with cancer benefit from these innovations and breakthroughs. Sibley is committed to serving Washington DC, Maryland and Virginia residents and to investing in new technologies and procedures as they are proven to be medically effective. While there are many variations, there are four basic radiation therapy methods. We offer the most sophisticated version of each.

Conventional Radiation Therapy
3D Conformal Radiation Therapy
Intensity-Modulated Radiation Therapy (IMRT)
TomoTherapy
- A form of Stereotactic Radiosurgery (SRS)
- And Image-Guided Radiation Therapy (IGRT)
Brachytherapy

Conventional Radiation Therapy

This is still the best choice for many tumors that can be easily localized and are not adjacent to critical tissues. The Sibley Cancer Center has state-of-the-art equipment for conventional radiation therapy—equipment so efficient it can reduce daily treatment time by as much as two-thirds.

Three-Dimensional Conformal Radiation Therapy

Technological advances led to this major leap in using radiation to treat cancer.

A digital simulator seamlessly integrates with treatment machines and planning computers to implement accurate and complex treatments.
Computerized planning software enables physicians to “see” the tumor and normal tissues as three-dimensional images from CT and/or MRI scans and to refine their aim by choosing and shaping beams to avoid healthy tissue.
A linear accelerator with finger-like lead blocks in the treatment head (multi-leaf collimators) shapes radiation beams to conform to the tumor according to the computer-generated plan. Sibley was one of the first hospitals in the area to offer 3-D radiation therapy. It is still the first-choice treatment for many cancers—usually those which cannot be felt or seen.

Intensity-Modulated Radiation Therapy (IMRT)

Intensity-Modulated Radiation Therapy is a breakthrough—particularly for patients with tumors which are close to critical tissues. IMRT is made possible by advances in technology and software.

IMRT offers tight dose distribution by relying on computer-generated algorithms. It is the treatment of choice for many prostate and lung cancers, unusual cancers of the head and neck, and some breast and gastrointestinal tumors. The Sibley Cancer Center was among the first in the area to offer it. IMRT is a result of tremendous advances in linear acceleration technology and a revolutionary treatment planning system.

The technology element is the multi-leaf collimator, positioned at the head of the treatment machine, which can shape the radiation beam into patterns that are complex and highly individualized. Each of the collimator’s multiple apertures can be opened or closed individually to enable each radiation beam to be focused with exquisite precision.

IMRT is primarily a feat of sophisticated software engineering. Working with a virtual model of the body, the software defines the ideal orientation and intensity of individual dose “packets.” These packets summed together form a highly precise tumor coverage.

Image-Guided Radiation Therapy (IGRT)

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TomoTherapy

TomoTherapy Hi Art Treatment System is a new, state-of-the-art cancer treatment tool. It is available in Washington, D.C. only at Sibley Memorial Hospital. It allows for a level of precision exceeding that of a linear accelerator because it delivers treatment from 360 degrees. Treatment with ThomoTherapy or Tomo Therapy is so precise, many tumors can be treated in a single treatment since the surrounding tissues can be spared.

How TomoTherapy compares to Stereotactic Radiosurgery (SRS) And Image-Guided Radiation Therapy (IGRT)

TomoTherapy is a highly refined form Image-Guided Radiation Therapy (IGRT). TomoTherapy is a highly effective method of delivering stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS), given its imaging capability and the precision of the helical radiation delivery. Sibley Cancer Center is the only hospital serving the Washington DC and Maryland metropolitan area to offer TomoTherapy. It is the first device to provide 3-D imaging immediately before each treatment to confirm the location of a tumor. The system then calculates the pattern, position and intensity of radiation “beamlets,” which are then delivered in a near-continuous spiral around the patient. The couch also moves, guiding the patient slowly through the ring-like accelerator-scanner.

What Cancers Can TomoTherapy Treat?

TomoTherapy is highly effective in treating cancers with well-defined tumors. TomoTherpay is ideal for treating prostate cancer, head and neck cancer, brain cancer, cancer of the spine, pancreatic cancer and lung cancer in certain areas of the lung. TomoTherapy delivers radiation with such precision, even tumors on or near critical structures can potentially be treated with little or no damage to healthy tissue or organs.

What Are The Benefits Of TomoTherapy?

TomoTherapy’s helical delivery reduces chances of skin irritation and hair loss. With TomoTherapy, it is entirely possible that many brain tumor patients will have no hair loss, and spine tumor patients will have complete relief of pain with no side effects. Prostate cancer patients may have noticeably fewer bladder and rectal side effects.

Brachytherapy: For Treatment Of Prostate Cancer And

Brachytherapy uses radioactive “seeds” that are strategically implanted within the body in a carefully mapped pattern. It is most commonly used for treating cancers of the prostate, cervix, lung, bile duct, breast and eye. Sibley has a dedicated, shielded brachytherapy suite and offers high-dose rate brachytherapy, known as HDR brachytherapy as well.