BrachyAcademy

Last week, I had the pleasure of attending the Drei-Länder Symposium für Brachytherapie for the first time. This German-speaking conference, held every two years, rotates between locations in 🇩🇪 , 🇦🇹 and🇨🇭. This year, the event was hosted by WEGE KLINIK in Bonn and Professor Michael Pinkawa . With around 140 participants and over 30 speakers from three generations (including Professor Richard Pötter), the symposium covered a wide range of topics, including gynecological, prostate, breast, skin, anal and rectal, liver, and keloid brachytherapy. I had the opportunity to present an overview of 16 years of peer-to-peer education in image-guided brachytherapy, supported by BrachyAcademy . A special session focused on brachytherapy treatment support, where nurses and RTTs shared valuable insights on patient planning, anesthesia, pain management, and psychological patient support. It was particularly inspiring to see so many young professionals in the audience and among the presenters, reinforcing my optimism for the future of brachytherapy. A big thank you to my Elekta colleagues Michael Niekamp Fahri Berber Jeroen Singelenberg for their product and application support throughout the symposium! Richard Pötter Vratislav Strnad Prof Peter Niehoff MaHM Frank-Andre Siebert Nikolaos Tselis Alina Sturdza Stefanie Corradini Maximilian Schmid Johannes Knoth Stefan Ecker Dr. med. Dr. Hathal Haddad Tamer Soror, MD, MBBCh, MSc, Dr.med., Dr. habil., PD Kristina Lössl Katja Lindel Attila Kovács Rodrigo Hepp Katja Reinhartz Claudia Schweizer Andre Karius Kathrin Hering Ricarda Merten Horst Hermani Jan Oelmann-Avendano and many others

Today, at the Drei-Länder Symposium für Brachytherapie in Bonn, Germany, Doctor Alina Sturdza received the prestigious Strebel Medaille in recognition of her outstanding contributions to MRI-based image-guided brachytherapy in gynecology. As a radiation oncologist and GYN Onc site leader at the Medical University of Vienna Alina has made a significant impact through her research, clinical work, and teaching. She is widely known for her scientific publications on RetroEMBRACE, EMBRACE, nomogram predicting overall survival, re-irradiation of gynecological tumors, and brachytherapy training surveys. She was leading the development of the brachytherapy curriculum for the EuroBT fellowship, shaping the next generation of specialists in the field. I’ve had the privilege of working closely with Alina through BrachyAcademy where she is an exceptional mentor and teacher at GYN brachytherapy clinical workshops in Vienna, Mumbai, and Rome. Beyond her professional achievements, she is an inspiring, charismatic colleague, mother, and friend. A special moment today was the heartfelt introduction by her “wissenschaftlicher Vater”, Prof. Richard Pötter, who traveled from Vienna to honor her accomplishments. Alina is still young, and I have no doubt that she will continue to push boundaries and achieve even more. Please join me in celebrating Dr. Alina Sturdza and her well-deserved recognition! #brachytherapy #radiationoncology #womeninhealthcare #womenleaders

I have just returned from London, where Bernie Gitmans, Sinead Calvert, and Olivia Tracey organized the North Europe Brachy User Meeting. This two-day event was hosted by Guy's Hospital and attracted over 80 Elekta customers from the region. Dr. Emma-Louise Jones and Stephanie Acheampong from Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust shared their journey in expanding and optimizing brachytherapy services as a part of a comprehensive cancer center. Their colleague, Dr. Jeyaanth Venkatasai presented on the implementation and early outcomes of palliative HDR brachytherapy for advanced/recurrent esophageal cancer. Dr. Bengt Johansson from Örebro University Hospital shared his team’s experience in developing and utilizing a reusable, rotation-symmetric applicator for single-fraction intraoperative brachytherapy in early-stage breast cancer. There were several engaging presentations focused on medical physics in brachytherapy, including: Tom Murray from Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust discussed optimizing MRI sequences (Zero Echo-Time) for better visualization of intrauterine brachytherapy applicators. Paulien Mulder from Radiotherapie UMC Utrecht shared experiences integrating MIM Maestro into the brachytherapy workflow for gynecological and head & neck cancers. Rachel Joshi from The Christie NHS Foundation Trust presented her extensive experience with Elekta’s gynecological applicators, discussing both advantages and challenges. A key focus of the meeting was the importance of patient voice in brachytherapy. Dr. Pauline Humphrey from University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust presented her work on optimizing treatment pathways to ensure consistency of care and improved patient experiences for cervical cancer treatment. A dedicated session explored electronic patient-reported outcomes (ePROs). Docrates Mehiläinen Syöpäsairaala | Cancersjukhus | Cancer Center in Finland was the first hospital in the world to test and implement Elekta Kaiku in 2012. Katri Siltanen provided insights into their extensive experience, with 4,100 patients having used the platform. Professor Naoya Murakami and Associate Professor Noriyuki Okonogi from Juntendo University (Japan) shared their ongoing project using Elekta Kaiku during and after chemoradiation for uterine and cervical cancer. The meeting also featured Fernando Escaleira Alves, who provided an overview of Elekta’s vision for brachytherapy innovations. My presentation summarized 16 years of Nucletron/Elekta BrachyAcademy support of peer-to-peer education in image-guided brachytherapy. Events like this are invaluable, as they bring the customer’s voice directly to the company, fostering trust, collaboration, and a strong foundation for future innovations and developments. I truly hope we can organize more events like this in the future. Bernie Gitmans Sinead Calvert Olivia Tracey Chris Cowley Jenny Granström Jenny Jeffries Fernando Escaleira Alves Yohei Watanabe

Thank you to the team at Banner MD Anderson Cancer Center in Gilbert, AZ, for organizing and hosting another successful clinical workshop on real-time ultrasound-based HDR prostate brachytherapy, held on December 9-10, 2024. This 1.5-day course featured the observation of a clinical case in the operating room and hands-on training sessions. Participants from the USA and Mexico shared highly positive feedback, noting that the workshop was instrumental in setting expectations and supporting the development of HDR prostate brachytherapy programs at their hospitals. Banner Health Amir Sadeghi Yerko Borghero Nelena Maldonado Kurt Maffei For details on future courses, visit our BrachyAcademy website: https://lnkd.in/e-9E7dMq

Join us for three days of practical GYN brachytherapy training at Gemelli hospital in Rome with sessions for Radiation Oncologists, Medical Physicists, and new sessions for Nurses and RTTs. Local expert teams and guest faculty from the Medical University of Vienna and UCLA, Los Angeles will make a fundamental introduction in image-guided brachytherapy (interventional radiotherapy) for cervical cancer including intracavitary/interstitial technique.   We foster team work and collaboration To emphasize the importance of teamwork, we’re offering a unique opportunity: when a Radiation Oncologist and Medical Physicist from the same institution register, your Nurse and RTT can join the course for free!   📅 Dates: March 26-28, 2025 📍 Location: Fondazione Policlinico Universitario «Agostino Gemelli» IRCCS, Rome, Italy Who Should Attend? Radiation Oncologists, Medical Physicists, Nurses and RTTs having prior clinical experience in gynecological brachytherapy.   Don’t miss this chance to expand your skills and network with top brachytherapy professionals. 👉 Register now! https://lnkd.in/eCE9UNgm #Thisisbrachytherapy #Brachytherapy #Radonc #Elekta

Join the workshop: Amsterdam Brachy College! Curious about incorporating brachytherapy into your clinical practice? This two-day clinical workshop is designed to give you a comprehensive understanding of the clinical and practical benefits of brachytherapy, from its unique advantages to its role among other cancer treatments.   📅 Dates: January 23-24, 2025 📍 Location: Amsterdam University Medical Center 🌐 Language: English   What to Expect: 🔹 Insightful discussions on the fundamentals of brachytherapy 🔹 Clinical and physical aspects, radiobiology, and imaging techniques 🔹 Hands-on sessions and interactive case discussions (focused on breast, cervix, and prostate cancers)   This workshop is ideal for Radiation Oncology residents, junior medical physicists, and radiation therapy technologists who want to enhance their knowledge and clinical skills.   Esteemed Faculty: Bradley Pieters, Henrike Westerveld, Danique Barten, Karel Hinnen, Dr. Cristina Gutiérrez, and Nicole Eder-Nesvacil — experts from renowned institutions across Europe — will guide you through this journey. 📧 Registration: Reserve your spot by December 16, 2024. To register, email amsterdambrachycollege@amc.nl. Take the next step in your professional growth and join a community dedicated to advancing brachytherapy in clinical practice. Don’t miss this opportunity to gain hands-on experience in a supportive, interactive environment! https://lnkd.in/eXHpxujv

🎉 We are excited to unveil the brand-new BrachyAcademy website, built to serve our growing brachytherapy community! Last year, we proudly celebrated ten years of BrachyAcademy. However, our commitment to peer-to-peer education began even earlier, with Elekta supporting this mission since 2008. We are deeply grateful for your support over the years. Together, we’ve hosted more than 130 clinical workshops, 100+ observational visits, and numerous on-site consultancy trainings—training over 2,000 professionals. And the feedback? A solid 9/10 on average! 🙌 As our community has evolved, your feedback has been instrumental in shaping a more modern, efficient, and user-friendly platform. Our old website served us well for over a decade, but it was time for an upgrade.  💻 Our new website is designed with you in mind: - A fresh, modern logo and layout - Easy navigation with clear CTAs to help you discover our courses and services - Customer testimonials and proof points to showcase the impact of our training - Seamless access to sign up for updates on upcoming workshops and events  This redesign is more than just aesthetics—it’s about delivering a better experience for you and supporting our mission of advancing brachytherapy education. Don't miss out, head over to our new website and start exploring now: www.brachyacademy.com

🌍 We recently held an incredible clinical workshop in partnership with the Leeds Cancer Research Centre of Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, focused on real-time HDR brachytherapy for prostate cancer! 💡 Led by Professor Ann Henry and Peter Bownes, the event welcomed participants from the UK, Morocco, and Chile. 🌎 The small group setting allowed for hands-on observation of the real-time ultrasound-based HDR brachytherapy workflow, including two clinical cases: monotherapy and salvage brachytherapy. Participants had the unique opportunity to interact closely with the full Leeds brachytherapy team—clinical oncologists, medical physicists, radiologists, and radiographers—while engaging in practical sessions and insightful lectures on Oncentra Prostate. 🎓 Interested in enhancing your brachytherapy expertise? Visit our brand-new website to explore upcoming BrachyAcademy courses: www.brachyacademy.com #Brachytherapy #HDRBrachytherapy #ProstateCancer #ClinicalWorkshop #OncologyEducation #MedicalPhysics #Radiology #Radiotherapy

Our latest paper is now published, detailing our experience in organizing a hybrid training on gynecological brachytherapy. This program was conducted by Tata Memorial Centre in collaboration with international brachytherapy experts and BrachyAcademy in Mumbai during 2022-2023. The paper is open access, and you can read it here: https://lnkd.in/eATBZYis #ThisIsBrachytherapy #Brachytherapy #Radonc #Elekta

CLINICAL WORKSHOP | English&Spanish | 6-7 NOVEMBER: https://lnkd.in/eHrrx25B HDR brachytherapy is an essential component in the management of locally advanced cervical cancer. The workshop will be in English with simultaneous live translation in Spanish. Learn from the experts from UT Southwestern Medical Center: Kevin Albuquerque, Bryan Hrycushko, Thomas Banks, Yesenia Gonzalez, Zohaib Iqbal, Astrid Medrano and Katheryn Klenda. Will you join? #thisisbrachytherapy, #cancercare, #elekta, #cervicalcancer, #brachyacademy