Seneffe, Belgium, December 12, 2018. Eckert & Ziegler BEBIG is proud to announce that its SagiNova® afterloader entered into operation at Hospital Militar Central in Mexico City. The first treatment involved a vaginal application with a Fletcher Applicator and was the first SagiNova® treatment in Mexico.
First plan in the SagiPlan® Treatment Planning Software
The radiation oncology department of Hospital Militar Central in Mexico City treats around 800 patients per year - from military members and former-military members to their families. The newly renovated area of the department measures over 145m² with a broad range of radiation therapy equipment including two linear accelerators. With SagiNova®, the hospital will mainly serve GYN (cervix, endometrium, vagina) patients as well as patients to be treated for breast and extremity sarcomas. In total, about 1.200 applications are planned with the new afterloader per year. Hospital Militar Central also plans to perform around 150 more patients with HDR prostate applications supported by the integrated SagiPlan® Prostate Module. With their experience in head and neck, skin, rectum, anal, endobronchial and esophagus brachytherapy, the HDR brachytherapy service can be extended further.
The Hospital Militar Central chose the Eckert & Ziegler BEBIG SagiNova® system due to its technical features. The decisionmakers were especially convinced by the SagiPlan® Treatment Planning Software and SagiNova's integrated In-Vivo Dosimetry System. Also, the cobalt-60 source with its long half-life and the subsequent economic advantages, along with Eckert & Ziegler BEBIG's long record of experience with this source type were essential factors for the decisionmakers.
"Since its foundation, Hospital Militar Central has always focused on providing the best available technology worldwide to its patients. Our SagiNova® system is the first installed in Mexico and we will not only be a national but also a Latin American reference center by applying and elaborating latest treatment standards as well as new application techniques. Cancer treatment requires strategy, multidisciplinary collaboration and technical support. We rely on state-of-the-art equipment in order to be able to contribute to improve our patients' quality of life." says Mayor Dr. Cirg. Ulises Mejia Gamboa, Head of the Radiotherapy Department at Hospital Militar Central.
About HDR brachytherapy
HDR brachytherapy allows radiation oncologists to deliver the radiation quickly, most often as an outpatient procedure. During this procedure a computer driven apparatus, called a remote afterloading device, pushes the radioactive source attached to a drive wire through transfer tubes and applicators to the treatment site. The radioactive source can be moved in millimeter increments and remain in a certain position (dwell position) for a predetermined amount of time to optimize the dose delivered. When the desired treatment dose has been achieved, the remote afterloading device automatically withdraws the radioactive source so there is no residual radiation or radioactivity.
HDR brachytherapy has been used since the 1960s and today is applied to treat cancers in body sites such as gynecological, rectal, prostate and breast. The procedure enables an accurate and precise tumor-specific radiation dose delivery in a shorter course of treatment compared to other types of radiation treatment modalities while preserving the structure and function of the organ(s) treated and nearby.
About Eckert & Ziegler BEBIG
My partner in brachytherapy and radiation therapy
Eckert & Ziegler BEBIG is a European-based group active in the medical device segment of the healthcare industry. Its core business is the production and distribution of medical products for the treatment of cancer, using brachytherapy. The company's headquarters are in Belgium, with production facilities in Germany and the USA, as well as subsidiaries throughout Europe, the USA, India and Brazil. In addition, Eckert & Ziegler BEBIG has a worldwide network of distributors and agents to support the international marketing and distribution of its product line. The company's products and equipment are intended for use by oncologists, radiotherapists, urologists, ophthalmologists and medical physicists.
Eckert & Ziegler BEBIG employs approximately 145 people. The company has been listed on the Euronext stock exchange since April 1997.
Contact:
Annica Witt
Marketing Communication Manager
marketing@bebig.com
www.bebig.com