Varian launches newly designed treatment platform for cancer care

Varian Medical Systems, a healthcare device and technology manufacturer specialising in cancer care, has revealed Halcyon, a newly redesigned CT machine for cancer patients.

Halcyon has been designed to streamline the clinical workflow behind intensity modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) cancer treatment, which includes many of the most common forms of cancer.

Above:Varian's new Halcyon treatment platform

The company claims that the device only requires nine steps for use between the beginning and end of treatment, compared to the 30 or more other steps employed by other technologies.

By reducing the time needed for patients, it said this allows clinicians greater predictability in scheduling their patients.

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There is expected to be 24.6 million cases of cancer annually by 2030, according to Kolleen Kennedy, president of Varian’s Oncology Systems, but there is also a shortage of equipment and clinicians.

“With the innovations in this new technology platform, the system will deliver high quality Halcyon treatments that empower clinicians to care for many more patients,” she said.

The Halcyon CT machine has a wider 100cm gantry to facilitate all kinds of patients and rotates up to four times faster than traditional machines, generating an IMRT plan quicker than usual, according to Varian.

The machine has a human-centred design, the company added, with a camera and sound system mounted inside the machine to help the therapist or clinician view and communicate with the patient. The Halcyon is also quieter than other CT machines, it added.

“The product simplifies treatment delivery while maintaining high quality plans delivered at significantly increased speed,” said James M. Metz, chairman of the Department of Radiation Oncology, University of Pennsylvania Perelman Cancer Center.