Radiotherapy Equipment Upgraded

RADIOTHERAPY equipment has been upgraded at Southend Hospital, thanks to a donation.

Cancer patients are set to benefit from new, specialist equipment at Southend Hospital. The Radiotherapy department at Southend Hospital, part of Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust, has bought a state-of-the-art QuickCheck device, which speeds up the quality checks performed on equipment, freeing up time for more radiotherapy sessions each week.

This was made possible by a donation of over £9,400 from local urology cancer group, CADGERS.

All radiotherapy linear accelerator (LINAC) machines, which use beams of high energy X-rays or electrons to give radiation treatment to patients with cancer anywhere in the body, undergo daily checks to make sure they deliver precise radiation doses.

The introduction of the QuickCheck device means they can more quickly detect any issues. The device is used on all four LINAC machines at Southend Hospital to check the radiation levels and to ensure they are working as they should be.

Rakesh Kizahakke Veetil, Deputy Head of Radiotherapy at Southend Hospital, said: “The support from CADGERS has meant that we have improved the way we check our machines.

“In addition to having more time for vital patient treatment sessions, these devices also allow our team to detect any issues instantly and resolve them faster.

“Like any radiotherapy department, machine time is extremely valuable to our patients. We thank CADGERS for their donation, which is already having a positive impact on our clinic and patients.”

Picture: From L-R Keith Hodgson (CADGER member), Rakesh Kizahakke Veetil (Deputy Head of Radiotherapy), Lynn Clark, David Regan, Roger Bassett (CADGER members) and Nicky Whilde (Head of Radiotherapy Physics).

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