We are excited to bring you the latest advancements from Strahlenzentrum Hamburg, one of Germany’s leading radiation therapy centers. In October 2023, Strahlenzentrum Hamburg equipped all three of their newly installed Elekta linear accelerators with the Integral Quality Monitor (IQM) System. Two accelerators are located at Strahlenzentrum Hamburg, while the third is at Strahlentherapie Elmshorn. This adoption of IQM reflected a forward-thinking approach to enhancing patient quality assurance (QA) and improving workflow efficiency.
Parallel QA with IQM and ArcCheck Phantom
Since October 2023, IQM has been running in parallel to the SNC ArcCheck phantom, the legacy patient QA system at Strahlenzentrum Hamburg. This dual approach has allowed their team to rigorously evaluate IQM’s potential for real-time treatment verification. In fact, they recently published a poster where they demonstrated IQM’s effectiveness in providing real-time monitoring without sacrificing treatment quality.
Key Findings from Strahlenzentrum Hamburg’s Study
The research team at Strahlenzentrum Hamburg concluded that the IQM System offers numerous advantages, including:
- Real-Time Accuracy Verification: IQM allows for live monitoring during patient treatments, ensuring the accuracy of each radiation beam as it is delivered.
- Time Efficiency: By shifting QA to the first treatment fraction, IQM opens time slots and enhances treatment throughput without compromising quality. This parallelization of patient QA and treatment processes leads to more efficient clinical operations.
- Enhanced Safety and Precision: The IQM system is highly sensitive to treatment plan discrepancies, automatically preventing beam application when mismatches occur in monitor units (MUs) or patient IDs. This added layer of safety minimizes the risk of treatment errors.
Poster Conclusion: IQM as a Reliable Alternative
In their poster, the Strahlenzentrum Hamburg team concluded:
“The IQM offers a reliable alternative to the phantom-based patient plan verification, offering the possibility to shift the QA to the first treatment fraction. This parallelizes processes in patient QA and treatment and opens time slots. Furthermore, it proves to be rigid to the patient plans, preventing beam application when mismatches of field MUs, and patient IDs occur.”
This endorsement further solidifies IQM’s role as a revolutionary tool for improving radiation therapy workflow, offering real-time treatment verification, and maintaining the highest standards of patient care.
Explore How IQM Can Optimize Your Clinical Workflow
We are proud to partner with innovative institutions like Strahlenzentrum Hamburg in their mission to provide superior patient care through cutting-edge technology. To learn more about how the IQM System can optimize your QA processes and improve treatment efficiency, please contact us to schedule a presentation.