Elekta has announced that it is currently developing Atlantic, a first-generation high field MRI-guided radiation therapy system scheduled to debut in 2017. The first systems are expected to go on sale in 2018. That schedule is subject to necessary regulatory clearances.
“To claim millimetric accuracy, you actually need to know where the target is in real-time. High field MRI-guided RT gives us this knowledge,” said Kevin Brown, global vice president scientific research for Elekta. The new system will be used to improve cancer treatments by reducing side effects, improving outcomes, and lowering costs.
“We are pleased with the progress we are making, closely cooperating with our clinical partners in the Atlantic consortium and our MRI technology partner Philips,” said Niklas Savander, president and CEO. “We are creating a new paradigm within the field of radiation therapy and a superior approach to treating cancer. Consequently, I expect Atlantic will positively impact the treatment patients receive, the cancer centers that deliver it and the market potential for radiation therapy.”
According to Savander, high field MRI-guided radiation therapy will become the standard of care within the next decade. He believes the price of an MRI-guided radiation therapy system will be about four times the price of the Versa HD, Elektra’s current high-end treatment machine. The company expects the Atlantic to receive about 75 orders during the system’s ramp-up phase until 2019, including systems for members of the consortium. More than 100 hospitals have already inquired about the Atlantic’s specifications.
Photo caption: Bas Raaymakers (left), professor of experimental clinical physics at the University Medical Center Utrecht, in front of Elekta’s Atlantic system with Robert Spaninks, Elekta service engineer. Elekta plans to launch Atlantic in 2017, making radiation therapy much more precise, with the purpose of improving the lives of cancer patients. (PRNewsFoto/Elekta)
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