Elekta introduced Leksell Gamma Knife Model C today. The newly refined tool will enable neurosurgeons to deliver optimal irradiation to intracranial targets in every-day clinical practice, while saving hours when compared to other methods of radiosurgery.

Gamma Knife® Surgery, is a non-invasive treatment method for many intracranial indications involving the delivery of a single high dose of irradiation to a small and critically located volume, while surrounding tissue receives a minimal dose. Introduced over 30 years ago, Gamma Knife Surgery offers a highly efficient treatment with low morbidity as well as lower total cost and better patient quality of life than alternative treatments such as craniotomy, fractionated radiotherapy, and linac-based radiosurgery. More than 100,000 patients have been treated with this therapy worldwide and more than 100 leading institutions around the globe can offer this therapy.

"Elekta has worked closely with neurosurgeons for three decades to develop and refine Gamma Knife Surgery applications," said Pär Nordström, Director International Marketing, Stereotaxy and Radiosurgery at Elekta . "Our users' ongoing quest to optimize dose delivered to the target while minimizing exposure of adjacent normal tissue has led us to develop Leksell Gamma Knife Model C."

Leksell Gamma Knife Society members' research indicates that more isocenters enable greater dose optimization, and that greater dose optimization can lead to more favorable clinical outcomes1. To attain this clinical goal, Leksell Gamma Knife Model C enables planning and delivery of more isocenters than was practically possible in the past.

Efficient optimal dose planning with Leksell GammaPlan WizardTM
The enhanced Leksell GammaPlan Wizard software enables rapid creation of dose-optimized treatment plans for Gamma Knife Surgery. After the neurosurgeon outlines the target area, Leksell GammaPlan Wizard charts each isocenter to build the optimal dose automatically in a matter of seconds. The neurosurgeon maintains total control, and can stop the process to refine his or her treatment strategy at any point.

Once the plan is accepted, it is transferred digitally to the operators console of Leksell Gamma Knife Model C. This eliminates manual plan data entry -- shortening planning time and minimizing potential for error.

Streamlined optimal dose delivery
To make delivery of many isocenters practical, Leksell Gamma Knife Model C is equipped with an Automatic Positioning System. Treatment data is transferred digitally from the operators console to this motorized system, which automatically repositions the stereotactic head frame in the appropriate x, y, and z coordinates for each isocenter.

This eliminates the manual setting of coordinates, reducing time demands on the neurosurgeon and shortening the total treatment time. For example, a typical nine-isocenter treatment would be reduced by at least one hour.

"The Automatic Positioning System will make Gamma Knife Surgery more comfortable for the patient and more convenient for the neurosurgeon," Said Nordström. "Patients will spend less time on the treatment couch, and neurosurgeons will be able to allocate treatment time to other important tasks in their departments -- saving hours of productive work time each day."

Additional refinements aid treatment process
In addition to enabling practical dose optimization, Leksell Gamma Knife Model C incorporates other refinements to simplify Gamma Knife Surgery. A check-and-confirm system controls all treatment parameters continuously and documents the treatment.

To maximize patient comfort, the system employs a comfort-enhanced, fully motorized, height adjustable couch. This feature eliminates the occasional need to prop patients up with sheets and pillows.

For increased safety, Leksell Gamma Knife Model C is equipped with an integrated, uninterruptable power supply (UPS). This allows continuous treatment through short power interruptions (under one minute). In the event of a longer power interruption, the UPS ends treatment smoothly, at an easily recorded end point, so that clinicians can resume treatment at the appropriate point when power returns.

"Leksell Gamma Knife Model C reflects our pursuit of constant refinement," Nordström said. "Together with our clinical partners around the world, Elekta looks forward to making a quantum leap in intracranial radiosurgery with this new tool."

Elekta is a world-leading supplier of radiosurgery and radiation oncology systems and solutions for precision neurosurgery and radiotherapy.
Elekta's neuroscience products, used for minimally invasive treatment of disorders in the brain, include the Leksell Gamma Knife®, the Leksell Stereotactic System™ and a number of image guided surgery (IGS) products such as SurgiScope®, ViewScope® and Elekta Insight™.
Elekta's radiotherapy products, used for advanced cancer care, include precise digital treatment systems using advanced technology in linear accelerators, multi-leaf collimators, treatment simulators, treatment tables and stereotactic body frames and 3-D dose-planning systems.

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For further information, please contact:
Lars Jonsteg, VP Corporate Relations, Elekta AB (publ),
Box 7593, SE-103 93 STOCKHOLM, Sweden
tel. +46 8 587 254 82, fax +46 8 411 4546, email: lars.jonsteg@elekta.se
or our local Elekta representative.
More information about Elekta can be found at: www.elekta.com

This product is not cleared for distribution in the U.S. and Japan pending regulatory approval.

1 a bibliography of supporting studies is available upon request