Surgery, oncology  

Accuray reports growing acceptance of CyberKnife robotic radiosurgery system

9 May 2006

Sunnyvale, Calif., USA. Accuray Incorporated has announced that spinal tumour treatments with the CyberKnife robotic radiosurgery system grew more than 75% since the introduction of the Xsight Spine Tracking System in April 2005. The company has also announced the first installations of CyberKnife in Greece and Vietnam.

The results of two clinical studies presented at the American Association of Neurosurgeons (AANS) 2006 annual meeting in April supported the clinical effectiveness of the CyberKnife System for treating tumours in the spine.

Peter C. Gerszten, M.D., associate professor of neurological surgery and radiation oncology at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, presented the results of an 87-patient study evaluating the clinical efficacy of single-fraction radiosurgery for the treatment of spinal metastases from lung cancer. The results demonstrated that spinal tumour patients who underwent treatment with the CyberKnife System experienced long-term tumour control, with 90% of patients experiencing long-term pain reduction.

"My experience with the CyberKnife System leaves little doubt in my mind that this system is an important treatment option for patients with spinal tumours," said Dr. Gerszten. "We have known for some time that radiosurgery is an effective treatment for intracranial tumours. We can now offer an effective radiosurgery treatment option for our patients with spinal tumours, as well."

In addition, John Sinclair, M.D., division of neurosurgery, Ottawa Hospital, presented the results of a study using the CyberKnife System for the treatment of intramedullary spinal cord arteriovenous malformations (AVMs) at Stanford University. Data showed that treating patients with spinal cord AVMs using the CyberKnife System resulted in significantly reducing the size of AVMs.

"Studies such as Dr. Gerszten's and Dr. Sinclair's further confirm the effectiveness of the CyberKnife System to treat spinal tumours, providing a comfortable treatment alternative to patients while maintaining sub-millimeter accuracy," said Eric Lindquist, chief marketing officer of Accuray.

The installations in Greece and Vietnam indicate growing global acceptance of the system as an essential tool in the treatment of tumours anywhere in the body. To date, hospitals in 11 countries outside the U.S. including Germany, Italy, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Netherlands, Singapore, Taiwan, and Turkey have installed the radiosurgery System.

Last year, the Anadolu Medical Center in Turkey installed the first CyberKnife System in Eurasia. “The addition of the CyberKnife System to Anadolu Medical Center means that for the first time ever, patients in Turkey and the surrounding region can access one of the most advanced cancer treatments available,” said Dr. Kayihan Engin, director of radiation oncology, Anadolu Medical Center. “In Turkey where lung cancer is the most common form of cancer, the CyberKnife System will play a critical role for treating patients with inoperable and complex tumours.”

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