£2.6m investment improves care for cancer patients

A new £2.6m radiotherapy machine has brought "improved reliability" to cancer treatment, a hospital said.

Northampton General Hospital (NGH) said its new linear accelerator (LINAC) machine was delivered last August and had undergone "rigorous testing" to get it ready for use.

It said the LINAC had been used to deliver more than 1,500 targeted high-dose radiotherapy treatments to more than 100 patients in the first three months of this year.

"We are delighted our oncology service now have access to some of the most up-to-date technology available to help in targeting and treating cancers," said consultant clinical oncologist, and NGH's radiotherapy oncologist lead, Dr Jenny Branagan.

"Radiotherapy plays a significant role in the management of the full spectrum of cancers and access to new, more modern equipment is an integral part of providing the best possible care for our patients."

The technology was funded by NHS England as part of a £70m government initiative to improve cancer care across the country that saw four other hospitals in the midlands also receive new linear accelerator machines.

Dr Mark Cowen, head of radiotherapy physics at NGH, said: "The replacement equipment will bring improved reliability and the latest in radiotherapy technology to the county.

"We are one of the first centres in the UK to use a new form of advanced imaging which is a technological step-change in the image quality and speed that is possible during radiotherapy treatments.

"The machine itself looks like a large CT scanner, weighs seven tonnes, and can deliver precise doses of radiation to many different parts of the body with accuracy to within 1mm.

"We will use it, alongside our two older linear accelerators, to deliver approximately 22,000 treatments for 1,700 cancer patients each year."

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