AMETHYST – REGION LEADER

The Amethyst Radiotherapy Center in Krakow is a leading medical center in the region that has been specializing in the treatment of oncology patients for over a dozen years. Therapies are performed using a wide range of treatments using ionizing radiation. The dominant role of the center is evidenced by the statistics of procedures performed and the number of patients served at the facility.

Over the course of 18 months, from January 2021 to June 2022, the Amethyst Radiotherapy Center performed 5111 therapy and radiotherapeutic irradiation at that time almost 4 thousand  (3997) sick. In 2021 alone, the Center granted: 10437 radiotherapy consultations, several hundred advice in the field of oncological psychology, and meetings on proper nutrition during cancer treatment.

These numbers, in the context of two other centers in Krakow performing similar procedures, put the Amethyst Radiotherapy Center in first place when it comes to the number of medical and medical-related procedures performed in the entire region.

– Statistics don't lie. Amethyst, as a well-coordinated, experienced team, fully committed to its duties, performs enormous and very hard work every day. Our priority is to constantly maintain high standards of oncological treatment. From the very beginning of its activity in Poland, the Amethyst Radiotherapy Center has been implementing a concept that assumes a harmonious combination of the competences of doctors, medical physicists and electroradiology technicians with the opportunities offered by cooperation with other medical operators in the region, including the largest partner - the Hospital. Rydygier in Krakow –  Mowi Przemysław Zachwieja, President of the Amethyst Radiotherapy Center in Krakow.

The most frequently performed radiotherapy techniques at the Amethyst center include:

1) VMAT – (Volumetric Modulated Arc Therapy), i.e. a multi-arc dynamic radiotherapy technique. It is carried out by specific rotation of the accelerator head with simultaneous modulation of the beam intensity during rotation. First of all, it allows for shortening the duration of irradiation compared to other available methods. Total (including VMAT H&N* and VMAT marker** fractions) in 2021, over 1250 treatments were performed. This means that up to 37% Among all the treatments performed at the Amethyst Radiotherapy Center, the treatment using this method is the one.

2) IMRT – (Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy), i.e. conformal radiotherapy with modulation of beam intensity. It is used especially in the treatment of cancer tumors that are located in close proximity to critical organs (with limited tolerance to radiation). Made last year 255 treatments (including 4 IMRT H&N).

3) Brachytherapy – (BTH) is a radiotherapy method that uses radiation sources placed directly in the tumor or in its immediate vicinity. For this purpose, special applicators are used, placed in natural body cavities (vagina, bronchus, esophagus) or directly in the patient's tissues (breast, prostate). Brachytherapy, as an independent method or combined with teleradiotherapy, is used in cancers such as: skin, prostate, breast, female reproductive organs, lung, esophagus, head and neck. In fact in 2021 at the Amethyst Center was performed 434 brachytherapies most of which concerned prostate cancer (over 100) and reproductive organ cancer in women (over 200).

4) Stereotaxis – it is a form of conformal radiotherapy used to treat small tumors that, due to their location, cannot be removed surgically. Thanks to this technique, it is possible to administer, with surgical precision and effectiveness, a high dose of radiation in one (radiosurgery) or several fractions while maximizing the protection of healthy tissues. In total, in 2021, the Amethyst Center performed 93 of this type of treatments, and in the first half of 2022 there were 25 of them.

An important element differentiating the radiotherapy treatment methodology is the division into two basic groups. The first one is rradical radiotherapy, used with the intention of cure, which is usually carried out for 4 to 7 weeks. The second one is radiotherapy symptomatic (also called palliative, aimed at slowing down the course of the disease and/or alleviating its symptoms) is carried out in a more intensified manner over a period of one to several days.

During the above-mentioned 18-month period (January 2021 - June 2022), the following were performed at the Amethyst Radiotherapy Center: 581 single-fraction palliation procedures and 628 multi-fraction palliation.

It is worth emphasizing that about 100 people work at the Amethyst Radiotherapy Center in Krakow. This is a team of highly qualified specialists who have undergone a series of specialized training courses in Poland and abroad. The Krakow facility is currently the only non-public center offering postgraduate training for doctors. In 2021, the Center specialized in 5 doctors and 1 medical physicist.

– Considering that our team has been working for many years in a very similar composition in terms of the number of people employed, and we are talking about doctors (13 people), medical physicists (10 people), radiotherapy technicians (19 people), the results of the number of procedures performed in 2021 should be considered at least very good. The first half of 2022 also shows that it will maintain a high position in terms of the number of procedures and medical consultations performed. - says Sylwia Kmak, head of the HR department and Patient Representative at the Amethyst Radiotherapy Center in Krakow.

To illustrate the scale of operation of the Amethyst Radiotherapy Center in a nationwide context, it is worth recalling that ; “In 2021, 92.507 patients were treated with radiation in Poland - including 80.550 using teletherapy (86%) and 11.957 brachytherapy (14%). (…) Overall, in 2021, 1.223 (1%) more patients were recorded in radiotherapy centers across the country than in 2020, and this increase concerned only patients undergoing teletherapy - 1.696 (2%), while in brachytherapy there was a decrease in the number of patients by 473 ( -4%). These data reflect the undoubted impact of the Covid-19 epidemic, which in the first half of 2021 significantly limited the activities of the health service in our country in the diagnosis and treatment of cancer diseases."***

It should also be noted that: "Poland still differs from many European countries in terms of equipment in radiotherapy and radiosurgery technologies, including: France, Germany, Italy, Belgium, Great Britain or the Netherlands and Sweden. The rate of use of radiotherapy in the treatment of cancer is approximately 10% lower than in the above-mentioned countries. There are still gaps in access to treatment in the country, geographically, quantitatively and qualitatively. (…) Most full-profile radiotherapy centers work in two shifts, which makes better use of their resources than similar centers in the EU.”****

* VMAT H&N – head and neck cancers
**VMAT tag** – implantation of gold or electromagnetic tags (prostate cancer)
***"Report on the state of radiotherapy in Poland as of December 31.12.2021, XNUMX"
****"Radiotherapy in Poland in the light of systemic changes - analysis and recommendations"