Technological advances enable progressive cancer treatment and help Huntsman Cancer Institute (HCI) toward its mission of improved patient care. Here are some highlights of the cutting-edge technology HCI offers.

Combined PET/CT Scanner
This technology integrates the benefits of metabolic imaging from positron emission tomography (PET) and anatomic information provided by computed tomography (CT). The combined PET/CT scanner reduces the number of procedures a patient must undergo and allows physicians to view the metabolic activity of a tumor and evaluate its size, shape, and relationship to other critical body structures. PET/CT is also used to determine the extent of metastasis, or spread of a cancer, and to determine proper cancer staging and classification.

da Vinci^® Surgical System
This system offers a less invasive approach for removing many types of cancers, and is currently used to treat prostate cancer patients at HCI. Using a robotic device, HCI surgeons sit at a remote computer console in the operating room where they control small instruments that access a patient’s prostate. The precision of this system spares nerves and the bladder and aids in more complete removal of the cancer. Patients also benefit from smaller incisions and faster recovery time.

Digital Mammography
This machine records high-resolution images of the whole breast onto a digital plate—a process similar to a digital camera—rather than an X-ray plate, as is used in conventional screen-film mammography. Images are transferred to and viewable on a computer in seconds, and since they are digital, can be magnified and the contrast and brightness altered for better viewing by a radiologist. Digital mammography may aid physicians in detecting breast cancers more precisely and prevent unnecessary biopsies.

Minimally Invasive Surgery Rooms
HCI features two operating rooms equipped to perform minimally invasive surgery (MIS). In MIS procedures, doctors make small incisions through which they pass tubes that hold a telescope and video camera as well as miniature instruments for cutting, removing, and repairing tissues. Less pain, fewer complications, and quicker recovery create better patient outcomes with MIS compared to conventional surgeries.

Novalis^®Shaped Beam Surgery^™
Brain tumor surgery is technically difficult and poses risks of nerve damage. Radiation therapy provides a non-surgical way to treat brain cancers. The Novalis^® is a linear accelerator that delivers precisely targeted doses of radiation powerful enough to destroy a tumor without harming surrounding structures. The technique is helpful for treating recurrent and metastatic brain cancers, as well as for tumors in surgically risky locations.