The Memorial Hospital Auxiliary’s 28th Annual Tree of Lights fundraiser met its goal to purchase equipment for the Requard Radiation Oncology Center of Shore Regional Cancer Center in Easton. Donations made to the auxiliary during the holiday season were used to fund a $5,800 quality assurance radiation monitor that calibrates the equipment used to deliver radiation therapy to patients.
The monitor is used by specially trained staff at the Requard Radiation Oncology Center to check the amount of radiation being generated from the machine that is used to treat cancer patients. The monitor also measures the shape and energy of the radiation beam that will penetrate the targeted tumor.
“By law we are required to take daily measurements that validate the performance of our two linear accelerators, the machines we use to deliver radiation treatments for cancer patients. Every morning, before we treat the first patient, we take a series of technically complex measurements to ensure that treatments are both safe and effective for each person who comes to our center,” says Phillip Sawyer, MS, lead medical physicist for the Requard Radiation Oncology Center. “Having this data helps us define even more precise dosage calculation and treatment delivery so that we can help ensure that the radiation received by our patients is the most effective dose possible.”
The new monitor also tracks the performance of the radiation machines and gives the physicists an early warning sign that service may be required.
“This monitor really helps us keep our linear accelerators in working order so we are less likely to have downtime and unnecessary appointment rescheduling for our patients,” says Brian Leutner, director of oncology services for Shore Health System. “We are grateful to the Memorial Hospital Auxiliary for their continued generosity to the Cancer Center.”
For more information about Shore Regional Cancer Center, call 410-820-6800 or visit www.shorehealth.org/services/cancercenter.
In photo: Memorial Hospital Auxiliary volunteer Julie Wojcik looks on as Phillip Sawyer, MS, lead medical physicist for the Requard Radiation Oncology Center, reviews the daily data measurements collected by the quality assurance radiation monitor. The monitor was purchased by the Auxiliary through the 2011 Tree of Lights campaign.