Philips Healthcare has achieved FDA 510(k) clearance for MRCAT (Magnetic Resonance for Calculating Attenuation), a MR-only simulation system intended for radiation oncology treatment planning for prostate cancer. MRCAT, which is part of Philips’ Ingenia MR-radiation therapy platform and has already received the European CE mark, supports radiation departments that want to employ MRI as their primary imaging modality for prostate cancer treatment planning.
The MRCAT system enables physicians treating prostate cancer patients to adopt a single-modality imaging approach that provides high-quality soft-tissue contrast for target delineation, as well as density information for dose calculations. To produce the density data standard for CT, Philips has integrated protocols to obtain CT-like images on the MR system.
Further, the manufacturer’s radiation oncology systems allow clinicians to plan treatment right at the CT console, thanks to the Tumor LOC v4.2 virtual simulation and patient-marking application enabled by Pinnacle 3 and Brilliance CT Big Bore integration. The latter technology permits personalized dose based on the clinical needs of patients while Pinnacle 3 Auto Planning expedites the intensity modulated radiation therapy planning process, in addition to making it more reproducible.
Rodney Ellis, MD, vice chairman of radiation oncology at the Cleveland-based University Hospitals Seidman Cancer Center, says this technology has strong implications for the radiation oncology field. “The real power of MR-only simulation is that it enables us to develop personalized treatment plans,” Ellis says. “It can also streamline our workflows, which in turn reduces the burden on prostate cancer patients and the health system.” What’s more, he says, it can also eradicate systematic errors introduced by MR-CT registration.
For more information about this system, visit Philips Healthcare.
