Project description DEENESFRITPL Novel non-invasive ventilation improves precision of radiological tumor treatment For treating cancer, radiotherapy targets tumours as accurately as possible, while avoiding damage to surrounding healthy tissue. The greatest challenge is movement caused by the patient breathing during treatment. To guarantee complete tumour irradiation, the tumour and an additional margin of healthy tissue are irradiated. Clinicians are constantly striving to reduce this margin of healthy tissue. The goal of the EU-funded MV for radiotherapy project is to introduce clinically the use of non-invasive mechanical ventilators to facilitate radiotherapy. The ventilator techniques were invented by the project partners and showed great promise in proof-of-concept trials on breast cancer patients. The techniques can safely prolong breath-hold duration in patients beyond five minutes, thereby reducing and regularising breathing movements and improving radiotherapy targeting. Show the project objective Hide the project objective Objective One of the greatest challenges for modern radiotherapy is ventilation causing motion of tumours and surrounding healthy structures. Technically, modern radiation delivery systems enable in principle very accurate radiation targeting of the tumour and avoiding radiation damage to healthy tissue. However, to deliver sufficient dose to a continuously and irregularly moving tumour, it is necessary to irradiate the tumour with a large margin. Currently such a large margin means irradiating a volume of healthy tissue that is about equal to that of the tumour itself. The healthy tissue damage is itself problematic. But it also prohibits further raising the radiation dose to the tumour to enhance the probability of tumour destruction and thus patient survival. I have invented the use of non-invasive mechanical ventilators to revolutionise radiotherapy delivery, by prolonging breath-hold duration beyond 5 minutes and by reducing and regularising breathing movements. I have demonstrated this works with breast cancer patients. To support its clinical adoption it is now necessary to train other staff to use mechanical ventilation, demonstrate it works with other cancer patient groups, measure the reductions in internal movement of tumours and healthy structures, show how these would produce superior treatment plans and that all this works in another European hospital. My career goal is for me to use the evidence derived from the fellowship to fund the introduction of non-invasive mechanical ventilators first back in our own department (Birmingham, UK), then for me to lead a multi-centre evaluation trial across Europe and finally to lead its introduction into radiotherapy practice throughout Europe. Fields of science medical and health sciencesclinical medicineoncologybreast cancer Keywords prolonged breath-holds mechanical ventilation radiotherapy MRI imaging treatment planning Programme(s) H2020-EU.1.3. - EXCELLENT SCIENCE - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions Main Programme H2020-EU.1.3.2. - Nurturing excellence by means of cross-border and cross-sector mobility Topic(s) MSCA-IF-2019 - Individual Fellowships Call for proposal H2020-MSCA-IF-2019 See other projects for this call Funding Scheme MSCA-IF - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowships (IF) Coordinator ACADEMISCH MEDISCH CENTRUM BIJ DE UNIVERSITEIT VAN AMSTERDAM Net EU contribution € 187 572,48 Address MEIBERGDREEF 15 1105AZ Amsterdam Netherlands See on map Region West-Nederland Noord-Holland Groot-Amsterdam Activity type Higher or Secondary Education Establishments Links Contact the organisation Opens in new window Website Opens in new window Participation in EU R&I programmes Opens in new window HORIZON collaboration network Opens in new window Total cost € 187 572,48