Helsinki University Hospital HUS Cancer Center is the first hospital in Finland where you can receive radiation therapy using magnetic resonance imaging for the treatment of cancer. With the help of the new technology, the treatment of tumors in the abdomen and pelvis can be better targeted.

The radiation treatment’s MRI-controlled linear accelerator was put into use on 1 March 2023. Currently, the device is the only one of its kind in Finland and there are 100 of them in the world. The device combines a magnetic resonance imaging device for continous visualization and localization of the treatment object and a linear accelerator for radiation.

With the help of the new technology, HUS cancer patients can be offered radiotherapy that is more individual than before. An MRI-guided linear accelerator is suitable for radiotherapy of almost all tumors.

“Those who benefit most from the treatment are patients with a small cancerous tumor, patients whose tumor is in the stomach or pelvic area and who move with the movements of the intestines and breathing,” says chief physicist, Professor Mikko Tenhunen at the HUS Cancer Center.

Suitable treatment objects include tumors in the pancreas and liver. The latest results around the world, for example in the treatment of pancreatic cancer, are promising.

The treatment options for cancer patients are increasing in Finland

With the help of magnetic examination during the treatment, the radiotherapy can be targeted better than before, reducing the radiation exposure to nearby healthy tissues. The radiation treatment can be directed and processed at each treatment session, which also enables a larger one-time dose, whereby the number of necessary treatment sessions is reduced.

“Through guidance via magnetic resonance imaging, we can treat many tumors with larger radiation doses, which improves the treatment results. At the same time, we are expanding cancer patients’ treatment options everywhere in Finland,” notes Tenhunen.