Treatment Delivery
Cyberknife
Invented at Stanford in 1994, the CyberKnife is today considered a major advance in the radiological treatment of cancer.
Current efforts aim to:
- Integrate intensity modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) with advance visualization technologies such as combined PET/CT. This approach refines treatment delivery by allowing clinicians to precisely locate the tumor in the patient's body and selectively escalate radiation doses to the more active areas in the tumor microenvironment. As part of this effort, researchers are identifying new molecular targets that may be used to monitor tumor activity in vivo. The program also supports the integration of IMRT and MR spectroscopic imaging. The greater resolution of this approach is particularly useful for identifying and treating small metastatic growths.
- Combine radiosurgery with chemoradiation techniques to deliver highly focused large doses of radiation to high-risk malignancies such as advanced cancers of the pancreas, lungs, head and neck, brain and spine. This work is leading to the treatment of previously inaccessible tumors.
- Develop novel radioimmunotherapies that leverage the exquisite specificity of the immune system to identify and destroy tumor cells. Researchers are currently exploring new ways to deliver radiation directly to cancer cells by using monoclonal (target-specific) antibodies with attached radioisotopes. The antibodies recognize and bind to the cancer cells, so that the radioactive material is aimed at destroying the target cells rather than healthy tissue. This approach represents a promising new therapy for the treatment of a wide variety of cancers.
- Advance the application of intensity gated radio therapy (IGRT) to the treatment of tumors in the lungs, pancreas, liver and prostate. By adjusting the delivery of radiation to the shifting location of the tumor in real time, this technique minimizes normal tissue damage and increases target tumor radiation.
Trial Administration