顱外立體定向放射治療可以減少肺癌患者的副作用
    顱外立體定向放射療法通常應用于顱內腫瘤，但今年來隨著實時圖象設備和光束整型設備的進步，它也開始廣泛應用于身體的其他部位，這些進步包括On-Board Imager，一種從線型加速器擴展出的顯像設備，以及高精度圖象引導的放射法（IGRT），以及120葉Millennium多點傳出瞄準儀，如果沒有這些發展，醫生不得不連同靶癌灶周圍的5－10mm的健康組織切除掉。
    一名36歲的中年肺癌婦女患者成為瑞士第一位使用一種名叫顱外立體定向放射治療的強定向型放射治療的患者，外科手術對這位患者已經不適合了，因為她一年前已經切除了一半肺，殘肺現在又發現癌灶，所以只能采用為期10天的三次高計量定向放射療法(使用來自威瑞恩醫療體系（美國加州帕羅阿圖市）的先進設備和來自瑞士波恩Lindenhofspital的一個臨床醫生團隊進行了三次有效的高計量強放射治療目的是為了破壞患者肺部的小癌灶)，令人欣慰的是患者對此療法有反映。Leon Andre醫生說病人現在癌灶已經縮小，病情正在恢復中，這次治療使用的市威瑞恩的Clinac 23EX型帶有120葉MLC多路傳出瞄準儀的直線加速器，能使醫生將光線調小到毫米級精度從而減小副作用。

Extra-Cranial Stereotactic Radiotherapy Lessens Side Effects for Lung Cancer Patients
    Stereotactic radiation therapy treatment is frequently used for cranial tumors but recent advances in real-time imaging equipment and beam-shaping devices have broadened its use to the rest of the body. These advances include the On-Board Imager, an imaging device that extends from the linear accelerator and enables highly accurate image-guided radiotherapy (IGRT) treatments, and the 120-leaf Millennium multileaf collimator, which allows the beam to be shaped to extreme levels of precision. Without such developments, clinicians would have been forced to expose a margin of between 5 and 10 mm of healthy tissue around the target tumor to account for possible movement.
    A 36-year-old female lung cancer patient has become the first person in Switzerland to be treated using a highly targeted radiotherapy technique called extra-cranial stereotactic radiotherapy. Surgery was not an option for this patient because her other lung had been removed a year ago,?explained Dr. Andre. new tumor appeared on her remaining lung and we decided that the best option would be to deliver three high-dose stereotactic treatments over a 10-day period.( Using advanced equipment from Varian Medical Systems (Palo Alto, CA, USA), a team of clinicians at Lindenhofspital (Bern, Switzerland) has effectively delivered three highly focused, powerful radiotherapy doses aimed at destroying a small tumor on the patient’s lung.) We are very pleased with the way the patient has responded to this new stereotactic treatment.?
    Dr. Leon Andre, a medical physicist at the private Lindenhofspital, reported the tumor has shrunk as a result of the treatment and the patient is now recovering well. The treatment took place using a Varian Clinac 23EX linear accelerator with a 120-leaf MLC (multileaf collimator) to enable clinicians to narrow down the beam to millimeter accuracy, thereby reducing the risk of side effects.