The linear accelerator, Unique Power by Varian, provides a comprehensive and cost-efficient solution for radiation therapy.It encompasses all necessary components and facilities to deliver the highest quality radiation treatments while maintaining uncompromised quality throughout.
The working of the Varian Unique Power is through the following components:
The Varian Unique Power offers a platform for several treatment techniques based on the patient's specific conditions. It allows for customized treatment, fewer side effects, and improved outcomes. Varian Unique Power facilitates conformal treatment using high-precision MLC, photon arc mode, total body mode, enhanced dynamic wedge, and intensity-modulated radiation therapy to cure cancer.
A single-low-photon energy linear accelerator offers reliable and robust technology. It offers a highly advanced and secure patient care system. The technology has a small footprint compared to other high-energy linear accelerators.
Varian Unique Power provides a platform for the software suites. These suites include ARIA and Eclipse. These suites together build a comprehensive treatment planning system.
Varian Unique Power comprises various image-guided radiotherapy tools. These include low-dose, high-quality MV imaging capabilities, online patient position verification, and offline review and approval.
Some of the advantages of Varian Unique Power are:
This single-low-photon energy linear accelerator serves as a robust and reliable technology. It utilizes a magnetron-based system that requires minimal bunker shielding. It offers flexibility and efficiency in treatment delivery, with a standard dose rate of 400 MU/min and an optional upgrade to 600 MU/min. Its streamlined design enables easy and smooth installation and ensures rapid operation for enhanced patient care.
ARIA is an all-encompassing information system designed to meet the different needs of oncology departments, comprising clinical, administrative, and imaging requirements. ARIA enhances efficiency by eliminating redundant data entry and simplifying the treatment process through a unified user interface. It integrates record and verify, the multileaf collimator, and PortalVision, ensuring a streamlined workflow.Eclipse is an advanced treatment planning system for Windows, equipped with intuitive automatic and manual contouring tools alongside image registration capabilities, including automatic registration using a mutual information algorithm. It comprises various planning methods, such as 3D conformal static and arc planning and inverse planning for intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT). Featuring the high-quality dose calculation algorithm AAA (Analytical Anisotropic Algorithm), Eclipse primarily supports clinical workflow efficiency. It utilizes clinical protocols to enhance planning processes and facilitate standardized solutions for clinical indications.
Varian's PortalVision aS500-II flat panel detector represents amorphous silicon technology. It features a 512 x 384-pixel matrix and a 30.1 x 40.1 cm² active imaging area. This cutting-edge technology facilitates patient repositioning through megavoltage (MV) imaging, backed by Varian's extensive expertise in solid-state technology. It ensures the durability and longevity of the detector. With Varian's proprietary acquisition system, the imaging beam automatically stops upon reaching the necessary dose level. It enables high-quality imaging with minimal radiation exposure, down to 1 monitor unit (MU). Mounted on the motorized Exact® arm, the flat panel offers high flexibility, allowing remote movement from the treatment console for imaging in various cases.
Auto Field Sequencing (AFS) is a standard feature of the Unique system. It enables automated delivery of multiple coplanar fields directly from the Unique console. This time-saving function streamlines the process by automatically retrieving accelerator mode and setup data from the Record & Verify (R&V) system. Operators can then remotely adjust the gantry, jaws, and collimator axes between treatment fields without returning to the treatment room. This feature eliminates the operator's requirement to manually alter the setup between coplanar fields, enhancing workflow efficiency and convenience. The Enhanced Dynamic Wedge (EDW) Mode combines precise jaw collimator adjustments with dose rate control to produce wedge-shaped dose distributions. Therapists benefit from time-savings, particularly when paired with AFS, as there is no requirement to re-enter the room to add or remove wedges. EDW offers wedges at angles of 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 45, and 60 degrees.
The LaserGuard patient protection system minimizes the risk of gantry collisions by detecting nearby objects close to the collimator and promptly halting gantry motion. This feature is especially beneficial during remote gantry rotations, whether initiated from the linac console or within an automated treatment sequence.
PortalVision Advanced Imaging facilitates precise patient position verification and ensures accurate treatment field size and shape verification. Megavoltage (MV) images of patient anatomy are acquired and compared with verification images, enabling quantitative assessment of patient setup accuracy. This system effectively manages day-to-day changes in patient setup and positioning during treatment. Physicians can digitally approve and review patient positions offline from their desks. Advanced Image Guided Radiotherapy (IGRT) techniques enhance tumour-targeting precision, aiding in preserving healthy tissue.
The side effects of the Varian Unique Power Radiotherapy System are fewer than those of conventional radiation therapy to cure cancer due to low doses and minimal tissue damage. Side effects, if present, may include fatigue, skin reactions, nausea, and vomiting.
Undergoing radiation therapy with Varian Unique Power is similar to undergoing radiation therapy with other linear accelerators. The care team will provide you with instructions to follow before, during, and after treatment. Each session may take 10 - 30 minutes, and the treatment course may last 1-7 weeks. There will be sufficient time between sessions for you to rest and recuperate. It is important to follow all the instructions of the radiation oncologists before undergoing radiation therapy with Varian Unique Power. It will improve outcomes and minimize side effects.