Philips unveils new radiation oncology portfolio for a more confident path to treatment at ASTRO 2018

Amsterdam, the Netherlands and San Antonio, U.S. – Royal Philips (NYSE: PHG, AEX: PHIA), a global leader in health technology, is showcasing its new suite of radiation oncology systems and software at the American Society for Radiation Oncology’s (ASTRO) 60th Annual Meeting and Exhibition in San Antonio, Texas. Seamlessly integrating CT and MR imaging systems with intelligent treatment planning software to support confident therapy decision making, the new portfolio represents a significant step forward in supporting improved care, accelerated time to treatment and enhanced patient satisfaction. 

“Care teams are continuously seeking ways to reduce uncertainty during the radiotherapy process and more confidently and efficiently deliver targeted, personalized therapy,” said Ardie Ermers, General Manager Radiation Oncology, Philips. “Spanning imaging and treatment planning, our new portfolio combines advanced imaging systems with intelligent, adaptive treatment planning software. Through strong, innovative partnerships with our customers and industry partners, Philips is designing dedicated radiation oncology solutions that enhance the work of clinicians and their patient care.”

Personalized planning with Pinnacle Evolution

At the heart of Philips’ radiation oncology portfolio is Pinnacle Evolution, the next generation of the Philips Pinnacle treatment planning software. It features Personalized Planning, integrating unique advanced automated planning tools with Sun Nuclear’s PlanIQ™ software to improve the assessment of treatment feasibility and provide an efficient therapy planning workflow. With Personalized Planning, clinicians can quickly create patient-specific, high-quality therapy plans.

Pinnace Evolution includes new proprietary intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) and volumetric-modulated arc therapy (VMAT) optimization technology. Replacing existing Pinnacle optimizers, the technology improves the speed of Pinnacle’s performance while maintaining the high plan quality clinicians expect.

Delivering treatment with confidence

CT is a key tool in planning radiation therapy. At ASTRO this year, Philips is launching the new Big Bore RT, a system designed to provide precise treatment planning through enhanced accuracy in lesion identification, tissue density calculation and segmentation. Imaging plays a critical role in reducing uncertainty in a patient’s course of treatment, enhancing understanding of tumor characteristics, improving accuracy of delineation, increasing precision of therapy delivery and better assessing a patient’s response to therapy. 

The Philips Big Bore RT is a dedicated oncology CT simulator built to advance critical clinical decisions across all phases of scanning, planning and treatment. New technologies include iterative model reconstruction (IMR), which delivers visualization of fine detail and improved clinical accuracy in the detection and delineation of small, subtle structures. With reconstruction speeds of less than three minutes for the majority of reference protocols, IMR improves image quality and advances auto-segmentation.

A new digital MR platform for innovation in radiation therapy

With its strength in soft tissue visualization and significant improvements in geometric accuracy, MRI continues to gain in popularity for radiation therapy applications. At ASTRO Philips is launching its new fully-digital Ingenia MR-RT platform, which comprises the Ingenia Elition 3.0T MR-RT and Ambition X 1.5T MR-RT systems. Both include Compressed SENSE, an advanced acceleration application that reduces 2D and 3D scan times by up to 50% [1], accelerating patient exams.

The Ingenia Ambition X is the first MR system to incorporate Philips’ breakthrough BlueSeal magnet, the world’s first MR system to enable helium-free operations [2]. The fully-sealed system does not require a vent pipe and is around 900kg lighter than its predecessor [3], making it easier to install in existing radiation oncology facilities. The Ingenia Elition incorporates new high-performance gradients to enable fast diffusion scans with a high signal-to-noise ratio, supporting improved tissue characterization and treatment response monitoring.

The Philips Ingenia MR-RT platform is the world’s first to have an MR-only simulation package. Philips is expanding the role of MR to new clinical areas in radiation therapy treatment planning and at ASTRO will showcase MR-only simulation for pelvis [4], enabling the planning of radiation therapy of soft-tissue cancers including the prostate, bladder, rectum, anus and cervix.

Partnering for integrated imaging, planning and treatment

Philips’ strong partnerships across imaging, planning and treatment support increased precision and clinical confidence to help clinicians deliver the best possible care. Demonstrating continued success for Philips’ strategic partnership with IBA, Proton Partners International continues to roll out its network of UK cancer centers incorporating integrated systems from Philips and IBA. In June, Elekta announced that it has received CE marking for Elekta Unity, the world's first high-field MR-linac, which incorporates Philips’ 1.5T digital MR imaging technology.

Earlier this year, Philips announced that it is collaborating with Sun Nuclear to integrate its suite of PlanIQ™ software into Pinnacle. At ASTRO, Philips is announcing that it has signed an agreement with Lifeline Software Inc. to utilize its dose verification technology. Lifeline is a developer of fully automated independent dosimetric validation calculations for conventional, IMRT, and VMAT treatment plans, including utilizing the ‘Monte Carlo’ dose calculation algorithm, widely recognized as the gold standard dose calculation method.

Visit Philips at booth #2111 at ASTRO. For more information about Philips’ presence at the show, including the full suite of Philips radiation oncology technology and integrated solutions, visit Philips’ ASTRO event website and follow @PhilipsLiveFrom for updates throughout #ASTRO18.

[1] Compared to Philips exams without Compressed SENSE

[2] The Ingenia Ambition 1.5T contains less than 0.5% of the helium of a conventional system and this is permanently sealed inside the device

[3] Compared to the Ingenia 1.5T ZBO magnet

[4] MR-only simulation for pelvis is pending 510(k) approval and not available for sale in the USA

About Royal Philips

Royal Philips (NYSE: PHG, AEX: PHIA) is a leading health technology company focused on improving people's health and enabling better outcomes across the health continuum from healthy living and prevention, to diagnosis, treatment and home care. Philips leverages advanced technology and deep clinical and consumer insights to deliver integrated solutions. Headquartered in the Netherlands, the company is a leader in diagnostic imaging, image-guided therapy, patient monitoring and health informatics, as well as in consumer health and home care. Philips generated 2017 sales of EUR 17.8 billion and employs approximately 75,000 employees with sales and services in more than 100 countries. News about Philips can be found at www.philips.com/newscenter.