Image Guided Radiation Therapy (IGRT) is set to elevate the standard of cancer treatment once again in our region with Varian Medical System’s “Edge” Linear Accelerator at Wellness Way. The Edge is found at some of the top cancer treatment centers across the country, and now it will be right here in the Capital Region, the first in Upstate NY. It is configured to treat every cancer and every patient whose care plan includes radiation therapy – from the most common cancers to the most advanced treatments.

The Edge is used for Stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) to treat sub millimeter lesions – pinpointing tumors with the highest dose rate available for faster treatment times. The high doses are possible because the Edge is coupled with real-time, high-quality imaging to target the tumor location and protect the surrounding healthy tissues.

Originally used for tumors in the brain, radiosurgery is now used to effectively treat cancer in different parts of the body, it is referred to as Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy (SBRT). Stereotactic refers to the use of three-dimensional images to precisely target tumors.

• High performance machine = faster treatment times which means less time for movement during treatment.
• Radiosurgery/SBRT are now used to kill tumors in the brain, spinal cord, lung, liver, head & neck, and other areas.
• The radiation beams are targeted to the cancer with accuracy within one millimeter. This helps to protect healthy tissue around the tumor.
• Radiosurgery/SBRT can deliver higher doses of radiation with fewer treatments than traditional radiation therapy.
• Many tumors can often be totally eradicated with just one treatment.

When your CCP provider draws labs in the office or you visit LabCare blood draw locations, you are using CCP’s exclusive lab for our patients. LabCare’s centralized processing center is located at Wellness Way and incorporates a new, automated, and modern robotic system designed to deliver results with unprecedented speed and accuracy. A few things to know:

• It has been custom-designed for CCP.
• It  provides a single point of sample tube input and output and tube identification, maximizing staff efficiency and streamlining processes.
• It has customizable settings for spin time, speed and sample dwell time, helping to minimize turnaround time and availability of results.
• It automates sample storage and retrieval to maximize use of space while ensuring sample integrity.
• It helps to reduce turnaround times by eliminating repetitive tasks for team members.
• It has an automated heat application of a foil seal to help minimize manual processes while preserving sample integrity and minimizing employee exposure to biohazardous materials.