Cutting edge radiotherapy treatment now available in Peterborough

Cutting edge radiotherapy treatment is now being offered to eligible patients at Peterborough City Hospital for the first time.

The first patients have already been treated at the radiotherapy department using a high-dose radiotherapy technique offered in the treatment of bone and lymph node oligometastases.

Oligometastases are small secondary cancers that are few in numbers or one solitary lesion.

Patients eligible to benefit from the treatment are already on the cancer pathway and can be referred by their oncology consultant if they meet certain criteria.

This sophisticated SABR treatment can now be offered to patients with solitary metastases by North West Anglia NHS Foundation Trust in its catchment area, who would have previously had to travel further afield for the treatment.

Experienced Trust staff already meet the standard required to plan and deliver this treatment.

Jaak Joe, lead SABR dosimetrist, has been instrumental in the lengthy and stringent process.

He said: “Offering this service locally is vital for patients in our area who previously needed to travel to Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge for this cutting-edge treatment”.

“NHS England has been expanding the service for SABR for a number of years and after being accredited through a rigorous validation process, the radiotherapy department at Peterborough City Hospital has now successfully implemented in the department as a standard technique.”