Intermountain Press Release

Provo, Utah—New technology in cancer care is coming to Utah County. The Utah Valley Cancer Center at Utah Valley Regional Medical Center announced that it is installing an On-Board Imager® kV imaging system from Varian Medical Systems. This new technology is the first-of-its-kind in Utah County. Having this technology means patients can receive cancer care close to home without having to travel to Salt Lake City for treatment.

The On-Board Imager makes it possible for doctors to offer patients Dynamic Targeting® IGRT (image-guided radiotherapy), an extremely precise form of treatment that utilizes high quality x-ray images and cone-beam CT immediately before treatment to allow ultra-accurate tumor targeting.

"This state-of-the-art technology will enable us to treat patients with the most advanced radiotherapy techniques, using the most clinically efficient processes in the world," says Jay A. Clark, MD, Radiation Oncologist at the Utah Valley Cancer Center. "It will provide us with tremendous versatility and precision for customizing treatments according to the specifics of each patient's case."

Tumor Tracking and Patient Positioning

The On-Board Imager, which is capable of real-time tumor tracking and automated patient positioning, enables clinicians to concentrate radiation doses on the tumor while protecting surrounding healthy tissue. This means that high doses of radiation can be delivered quickly and with great precision which translates into fast treatments, greater patient comfort, and the potential for better outcomes.

"Radiation therapy is used today in more than half of all cancer treatments due to its unique clinical advantages," says Craig Nielsen, manager of Radiation Oncology at the Utah Valley Cancer Center. "Using Dynamic Targeting IGRT, we have the potential to substantially improve treatment outcomes by doing a better job of protecting healthy tissue while delivering more powerful doses to cancerous tumors."

The IGRT technology is expected to be installed and operational by mid-April.