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Published in Viyaasan Mahalingasivam, Marc A Gladman, Manoj Ramachandran, Secrets of Success: Getting into Medical School, 2020
Veena Naganathar, Asil Tahir, Pairaw Kader, Omar Chehab
The diversity of cancers means that there are several different treatment regimens and no single ‘magic bullet’. There is no definitive cure for cancer, although a variety of options is currently used depending on the situation: Chemotherapy: this involves the use of drugs with powerful chemical properties that kill cells. Ideally these drugs would be designed with the intention of killing only the cancerous cells, but this is not always the case and can result in damage to healthy tissues.Radiotherapy: this involves the use of ionizing radiation capable of killing cells. This radiation is often delivered via the use of laser guidance and targeted to cancerous tissue.Surgery: the use of surgical techniques to remove cancerous portion from the body to prevent further spread and/or invasion.
Introducing SGRT into the Clinic
Published in Jeremy D. P. Hoisak, Adam B. Paxton, Benjamin Waghorn, Todd Pawlicki, Surface Guided Radiation Therapy, 2020
Traditionally, every patient is given a set of semipermanent or permanent marks placed during their initial simulation (most often 3D imaging via CT and marking via laser guidance). Typically, there are three orthogonal marks: anterior (for supine setup) and bilateral locations to triangulate the isocenter within the patient. These marks become the connection between the patient’s treatment planning orientation and the day-to-day clinical orientation at the treatment machine. Often, multiple sets of physical marks are required: for example, the initial marks define the triangulated position (e.g., “user origin”) relating the patient’s orientation to the original simulation image set, but then there is a 3D displacement between this position and the actual treatment position (e.g., the “treatment isocenter”) which is also physically marked by the therapists for daily setup purposes. Orthogonal lasers, aligned to the linear accelerator (linac) isocenter, are referenced to manually set up the patient to the treatment marks, while image guidance allows the therapists and physician to fine-tune the setup position due to daily setup uncertainties (mechanical, anatomical, etc.). If the setup of the patient proves difficult for any number of reasons, more marks may be placed to assist in daily setup. Alternatively, if setup reproducibility is an ongoing concern, the patient can be resimulated and/or replanned.
An overview of thermal necrosis: present and future
Published in Current Medical Research and Opinion, 2019
Mohamed Mediouni, Theodore Kucklick, Sébastien Poncet, Riadh Madiouni, Amine Abouaomar, Henning Madry, Magali Cucchiarini, Bohdan Chopko, Neil Vaughan, Manit Arora, Kemal Gökkuş, Mario Lozoya Lara, Lorenlay Paiva Cedeño, Alexander Volosnikov, Mohamed Hesmati, Kevin Ho
Bloomquist et al.62 discussed a stop device, removing high plunge depth variability from the sensory control of the operator. It remains a mechanical tool and so it relies on the surgeon’s abilities too. Choi et al.61 developed a novel smart surgical navigation system for intramedullary nailing in orthopaedic surgery. They stated that “Using a handle-integrated laser guidance module, the system can target a drill insertion point onto the skin, indicating an accurate target position to perpendicularly access an invisible distal hole”. It seemed a very accurate method, but the drilling process is still based on the surgeon’s experience.