Construction on target for country's first Tomo Therapy facility

Ceylinco Healthcare Services Limited (CHSL) has announced that construction of its second Radiation Treatment Unit is progressing to schedule, with much of the concrete bunker that will house the country's first TomoTherapy Treatment System nearing completion.

An inspection team comprising of foreign and local experts visited the construction site at Park Street, Colombo 2, in March, and provided clearance for the next stage of construction of the shielding structure, the company said.

"As part of our quality control process, the Tomotherapy Installation Project Manager/Specialist Mr. Valeri Zassedatel from Belgium and Jagmeet Singh, the Technical Support Manager from India are required to visit the project site at different stages of the construction of the building and the bunker," a Spokesman for CHSL explained.

"They were joined by a team of local construction specialists involved in the project and were completely satisfied with the precise measurements and quality of the shielding structure under construction," he said.

The inspection team scrutinised the system mounting location, mechanical details, electrical wiring including ducting and conducting, the operator station requirements, planning station requirements, and data server requirements, before signing off on clearance to proceed to the next phase of construction.

The new TomoTherapy machine will be installed in a solid concrete bunker built to specifications provided by the Atomic Energy Authority. Ceylinco Healthcare Services has made an investment of $ 3.725 million (about Rs 500 million) for the TomoTherapy Hi. Art Treatment System capable of treatment of the full spectrum of cancers.

The TomoTherapy treatment system enables Image Guided Radiation Treatment (IGRT), which brings a new dimension in delivering precise radiation to the target and sparing normal tissue. As both a treatment delivery machine and a CT scanner, the TomoTherapy system allows doctors to take a CT scan just before each treatment. With the scan, they can verify the position of the tumour and, if necessary, adjust the patient's position to help make sure radiation is directed right where it should be. The new building being constructed by CHSL to offer this facility in Sri Lanka will initially comprise of two floors, of 4500 square feet each. The TomoTherapy machine will be installed on the ground floor which will also accommodate a Data Server room, Treatment Planning room, Operator Station, a mechanical room, a reception area, patient waiting area and a lobby. The building is designed for later expansion up to nine floors.

Established in collaboration with the Washington Hospital Centre, Ceylinco Healthcare Services owns and operates the state-of-the-art Ceylinco Radiation Treatment Centre at Park Street, Colombo 2, the Ceylinco Healthcare Centre and the Ceylinco Diabetes Centre, which offer comprehensive screening, diagnostic services and medical care in a comfortable and non-hospital atmosphere.