2008-07-10 10:54:20 - Until recently, patients with inoperable tumors had little recourse to improve their conditions. But Bangkok Hospital Medical Center now offers advanced technology that literally provides a ray of hope.

Patients with brain tumors for decades have had limited options for treatment, but the latest cutting-edge technology at the Bangkok Hospital Medical Center now offers hope.

Previously, many patients could not be treated with radiotherapy because their tumors were too close to critical brain structures. Bangkok Hospital Medical Center (BMC) has acquired Novalis technology that involves shaped-beam radiation surgery, meaning many

of these tumors can now be treated.

Novalis shapes the radiation beams to match the exact shape of the tumor or lesion. The result is the tumor or lesion receives its prescribed dose of radiation, while avoiding critical tissues and organs.

The primary advantages of stereotactic radiosurgery are its precision and minimal risk. Equipped with highly sophisticated computer-based imaging techniques, Novalis delivers the radiation beam with high precision and produces a sharp radiation dose gradient at the tumor and normal tissue boundary.

"It is the most clinically advanced cancer treatment option for patients often considered to have inoperable tumors," says Jason Chandler, Novalis' national sales manager.

The Novalis procedure is non-invasive, painless and eliminates the risks associated with major surgery. Many patients are able to have shaped-beam surgery as a day treatment procedure.

The actual treatment session typically takes less than 30 minutes. This involves the movement of the Novalis machine around the head or body as the focused beams converge on the target. Multiple radiation beams radiate the tumor from different angles. The invisible radiation is not felt at all.