Singapore: US-based Accuray showcased its CyberKnife and TomoTherapy Systems at 22nd China International Medical Instruments and Equipment Exhibition and Seminar (CHINA-HOSPEQ) 2013, which was held from August 16 to August 18.

For the first time, China's hospital procurement officials saw Accuray's CyberKnife and TomoTherapy Systems on display in the booth with system models and demonstration stations featuring various products and clinical illustrations. PLA General Hospital and Peking Union Medical College Hospital in Beijing led the charge with these new technologies, having already acquired the CyberKnife and TomoTherapy Systems. PLA General Hospital is the first and only China hospital with both systems.

Cancer is one of the leading causes of mortality in China, with almost two million cancer deaths nationwide during 2008. The CyberKnife and TomoTherapy Systems give physicians in China the most innovative and precise treatment solutions to help make the pain and suffering of cancer a thing of the past, and provide new hope to more cancer patients.

"We are committed to strengthening our partnerships in China, with the government and distributors, to offer more patients the opportunity to benefit from our effective, personalized treatments," said Ms Kelly Londy, executive vice president and chief commercial officer at Accuray.

"Our factory in Chengdu produces the TomoTherapy System's linear accelerators (linacs) for the global market. Accuray continues to invest in this factory with new machinery, and is continuing to further our commitment to quality, evidenced by the factory's ISO 9001 accreditation," said Dr Roger Cao, MD, Asia Pacific president at Accuray.

The TomoTherapy System is a radiation therapy system designed specifically for image-guided, intensity-modulated radiation therapy. Its on-board CT scanner enables daily pre-treatment imaging for increased accuracy and the system's linear accelerator (linac) enables the continuous helical delivery of radiation from 360 degrees around the patient, providing for increased treatment precision.

"Clinicians use daily CT imaging to guide treatment based on the size, shape and location of tumors on the day of treatment, rather than treating based on how the tumors looked a week or a month ago. This ensures radiation delivery with the TomoTherapy System provides highly precise treatments," Dr Cao said.

Accuray's CyberKnife System is an innovative radiation oncology solution for treating and tracking moving targets with extreme precision and accuracy. It is the world's first and only robotic radiosurgery system, capable of delivering high-dose radiation therapy with sub-millimeter accuracy to any tumor, even those considered inoperable. It safely treats tumors anywhere in the body, including the lung and liver, two of the most prevalent cancers in China, and has been used to treat hundreds of thousands of patients worldwide. Treatment with the CyberKnife System is completely non-invasive and painless. It requires no anesthesia, involves no incision or overnight hospital stays, has minimal side effects, and allows patients to immediately resume their usual activities.