Providers Seek Radiation Therapy Equipment with Improved Technology and Greater Reliability

    OREM, UT, November 30, 2011 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Providers are looking for the holy grail in the oncology market--bleeding edge technology and reliability all in the same radiation therapy treatment system. According to a new study by KLAS, "Radiation Therapy 2011: A Dose of New Technology," some providers may have found it.

Elekta Leksell Gamma Knife Perfexion offers very advanced technology with almost no downtime and earns an overall performance score of 94.4 out of 100. "A score that high is very rare at KLAS," said Monique Rasband, director of oncology research and report author. "Perfexion is a very unique system, and though it is not ideal for every situation, many providers seem to think the Perfexion can do no wrong. The team that works with Perfexion also receives a lot of praise for their client support. It's the perfect storm of all the right things working together."

Varian's TrueBeam garnered much attention in the report as well, and was the top pick for providers' wish lists. When asked what one would buy if money were no consideration, providers chose TrueBeam more often than any other system. Though still based on a small sample, those providers using TrueBeam appear to be happy overall, but some report issues with downtime while they are working out the bugs on the new technology.

"Though downtime was an important issue for providers, TomoTherapy managed to rise above some of their challenges with downtime by offering excellent support," said Rasband. "However, TomoTherapy is the exception to the rule. Both Varian Trilogy and Clinac iX seem to have taken a back seat to the TrueBeam and providers are more critical of downtime provider satisfaction has dropped off since last year's study. On the other hand, Infinity and CyberKnife have minimal downtime and provider satisfaction reflects that."

Patient safety was another theme in this years' report. Most providers felt that their equipment was relatively safe, however, the definition of what made the equipment safe varied. For some providers, safety equated to the accuracy of the equipment, but for others it was the built-in system controls.

Because they are an integral part of the provider experience with radiation therapy equipment, treatment planning systems were included in this study. Varian Eclipse earned the number one spot in the treatment planning segment. Varian customers felt that Eclipse was easy to use with Varian's own equipment. Philips Pinnacle fared relatively well and both Elekta and Varian customers liked using it with their equipment. However, providers were unsure of Philips' dedication to developing the system and some mentioned they had fallen behind on keeping up with equipment updates.

As the population ages, and the oncology market continues to grow, the door is open for new vendors. In treatment planning, RaySearch is going head to head with the established vendors in that space, and has created some buzz. MASEP Infini just signed their first deal in the United States and will be taking on the Gamma Knife Perfexion. In addition, the first Vero SBRT in the U.S. goes live this year.

Some equipment appeared in the report for the first time this year. Varian TrueBeam, Varian Novalis Tx, and Siemens Artiste are included with preliminary findings.

To learn more about the oncology market and the strengths and weaknesses of the measured vendors, the report "Radiation Therapy 2011: A Dose of New Technology" is available to healthcare providers for a significant discount off the standard retail price. To purchase, healthcare providers and vendors can visit www.KLASresearch.com/reports.

KLAS is a research firm specializing in monitoring and reporting the performance of healthcare vendors. KLAS' mission is to improve delivery, by independently measuring vendor performance for the benefit of our healthcare provider partners, consultants, investors, and vendors. Working together with executives from over 4500 hospitals and over 2500 clinics, KLAS delivers timely reports, trends, and statistics, which provide a solid overview of vendor performance in the industry. KLAS measures performance of software, professional services, and medical equipment vendors. For more information, go to www.KLASresearch.com, email [email protected], or call 1-800-920-4109 to speak with a KLAS representative. Follow KLAS on Twitter at www.twitter.com/KLASresearch.

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