October 25, 2007 - Varian Medical Systems today announced that the company will unveil RapidArc, a radiotherapy technology that will reportedly enable clinicians to program a Varian linear accelerator designed to deliver more precise forms of intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT), at the meeting of the American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology (ASTRO) held Oct. 28 to Nov. 1, 2007, in Los Angeles, CA.
Varian's RapidArc quickly delivers a complete IMRT treatment in a single rotation of the treatment machine around the patient. This can reportedly replace more time-consuming IMRT treatment methods which require machines to make several rotations around the patient or to make repeated stops and starts to set up beam angles.
Varian researchers have found that RapidArc dose distributions can be well suited for a variety of clinical sites, including prostate and head and neck cases, according to the company. The system will reportedly also make it much simpler to plan and deliver IMRT by eliminating numerous steps required for conventional treatments that use multiple beam angles. By reducing the time it takes to deliver IMRT and other highly-precise forms of radiation therapy, RapidArc has the potential to improve the quality of care and of patient comfort, while making radiation oncology a more affordable treatment, according to Varian.
Varian is aiming to make RapidArc available for radiation clinics in spring 2008. As a product pending FDA 510(k) clearance, it is not yet available for sale in the U.S.
For more information: www.varian.com
June 14, 2024 
