Exchange Scientist Program Subcommittee
of the
International Affairs Committee
Exchange Scientist Program Subcommittee
of
the
International Affairs Committee
This is a continuation of the sponsorship of AAPM Exchange Scientist program awarded to Dr. Komanduri Ayyangar in 2004.(see report of the first trip in AAPM newsletter Vol 31. No.3 May/June 2006 page 5). In his second trip to India , Dr. Komanduri Ayyangar made several trips during nov ?6- march ?7 to the Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Medical Trust Hospital, which is located in a rural area, very near the town of Bhimavaram, West Godavari District, Andhra Pradesh, India. He filed the following report.
Dr.
M.R. Raju, a well known scientist retired from Los Alamos National Laboratory
has established the International Cancer Center, a model rural cancer treatment
and research institute. There was no other cancer center in the District
of West Godavari, which has a population of four million.
Since
my visit last year, the center has made significant progress. Most importantly,
the patients are very cheerful, happy and
hopeful that the technology and expertise has come home directly to address
their needs.
The center is currently treating 20-30 patients per day on their Cobalt-60
facility. In addition, the center is equipped with Siemens CT scanner used for
diagnosis and treatment planning. Dedicated treatment planning equipment is also
available. The center is equipped with chemotherapy and lab facilities as well.
Based
on a grant that we have submitted last year, the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board
(AERB) has awarded a grant to do a diagnostic radiology project at the center.
Using some of the funds from this grant, the
center has acquired additional physicist and a technologist. A lot of time was
spent in acquiring bids and specifications and ordering the equipment required
for the project. The equipment received from AAPM members, especially Dr.
Natarajan of Winthrop Hospital, NY has been proved useful for this project.
The
highlight of the trip is the ordering of HDR equipment. Dr. Raju has acquired
sufficient funds to order a Cobalt-60 based HDR from BEBIG, Germany. The
dedicated room which was designed for Iridium was surveyed and after several
communications with the AERB, the layout was approved with additional shielding.
The equipment is due to arrive in the next two months.
The
current staff includes the following individuals. Dr. M.R.Raju Director, Dr
Ravindra, Dr. Satya Prasad and Dr. Manisha Radiation Oncologists, Mr. Pradush
Narayanan, Mr. Fenedict Jesuraj physicists.
In addition, there are many other technical and nursing
staff .
The
MLC design that we have worked on last year has been constructed as a wood model
and now is given to a fabrication facility in Hyderabad. This project will be
continued and new indigenous accelerators are being envisaged that use the
know-how from this technology.
A
seminar to mark the addition of HDR is also being planned. Dr. Raju’s goal is,
in addition to quality care, to make the center gain international
recognition as a model rural center.
The
center needs the support of AAPM in its future endeavors especially in
sponsoring physicists every year. The center is in need of services that can be provided by medical
physicists and radiation oncologists for significant length of time. This
is a direct invitation and plea to the retired physicists of the AAPM to
go visit this cancer center in India.
Also,
the center is in need of simple
equipment such as phantoms, radiation dose meters, radiation monitors, personal
dosimeters, patient immobilization devices, low melting point alloy shields
etc. in good working condition since they are not easy to find good
quality products in India.
Fig.1
A view of the MGMMT hospital entrance
Fig.2.
Wooden model of the MLC design for
Cobalt-60
Fig.3
In-service session on radiation safety to staff
Fig.4.
Teachers Dr. Raju, Dr. Ayyangar,
Dr. Manisha and Dr. Ravindra
Disclaimer
Neither the AAPM, its members, nor its officers will assume liability for any damage sustained by the Exchange Scientist and/or the host institution as the result of activity(ies) associated with this exchange program.
Last update: January 4, 2008