Wednesday 18 January 2023

Earlier this week, the Radiation Oncology department and MR Linac team, with support from hospital management and Elekta, proudly celebrated their 1000th treatment delivery.

"We have achieved so many 'firsts' as a program," says Sandie Fisher, MR Program Lead and Principal Medical Physicist.

These include: the clinical implementation of the first and only Elekta Unity MR Linac in Victoria and the first dedicated radiotherapy MR simulator in Victoria, as well as the first brain, head and neck and breast patients to be treated on an MR Linac in Australia.

Drew Smith, Acting Clinical Lead MRI RT adds: "Reaching this milestone has really been a combination of the whole team's effort - not just the Radiation Therapists, but also the Radiation Oncologists, Medical Physicists, nursing staff, admin and the whole department. This machine is not only an evolution of radiation therapy, but also a leap forward in technology and the ability to deliver personalised patient centered care and we are so fortunate to have access to it here at Austin Health."

"To see the multidisciplinary team come together under the trying circumstances that COVID-19 imposed, and to bring the project's vision to fruition hasn't gone unnoticed and the hospital is very proud of the teams' achievements," Cameron Goodyear, Chief Operating Officer and Deputy CEO says. 

Sandie adds: "It's also impressive to see how the program has expanded so rapidly in the last couple of months to increase our clinical offerings with the rollout of pelvis and upper abdominal treatment including liver and pancreas, which will provide increased access and opportunity for so many extra patients to benefit from the new technology". 

"Congratulations on the 1000^th treatment milestone, thank you again for your commitment to the patients and the hospital and please continue to keep up the good work," Cameron adds.