During image-guided radiation therapy (IGRT), repeated image scans are made to create a dynamic picture of the tumor. Montefiore Einstein Center for Cancer Care is one of the first cancer centers in the New York metropolitan area offering IGRT using On-Board Imaging/Cone-Beam CT with TrueBeam™ and Trilogy™ linear accelerators.
This allows our physicians to see and analyze tumors in real time, offering them unparalleled tumor control and sparing normal tissue. The images are fed into computers to assist in guiding the radiation beam and to precisely follow the tumor's motion. This is useful, for example, with cancers of organs that move with respiration.
IGRT images allow us to recognize changes in the size and location of tumors and to adjust the position of the patient during treatment or to make changes to the radiation plan. These image scans increase the accuracy of the radiation so the dose conforms to the tumor target and radiation exposure to healthy tissue is reduced.