31 January, 2004 marked the much anticipated inauguration of the Cancer Institute at Amrita Institute of Medical Science and Research Centre, Kochi, Kerala
The Cancer Institute is dedicated to providing fully integrated, multidisciplinary cancer treatment under one roof with state-of-the-art technology, having assembled a wide range of experts in all disciplines related to cancer, from various parts of the country and abroad, to form an integrated team to treat the disease.
The strength of the Institute lies in its ability to offer all treatment modalities under one roof. Patients will be seen and evaluated in multi-modality clinics such as Head and Neck, Breast and Gynaecology by a team of specialists in each malignancy. Treatment decisions are then made in multidisciplinary tumour boards where these specialists sit together and discuss the plan of treatment. The emphasis is on combining all modalities of treatment needed in the right combination to achieve the best results while minimizing side effects. To facilitate multidisciplinary care of cancer patients, the Institute is organized under the following services:
- Head and Neck Oncology
- Women’s Cancer Programme
- Urologic Oncology
- Neuro-oncology
- Pediatric Oncology
- Thoracic oncology
- Soft tissue and Sarcoma services
- Lymphomas and Hematologic
- Malignancies
- Gastrointestinal Oncology
The Radiation Oncology Department is composed of a dedicated team of Radiation Oncologists, Medical Physicists, Dosimetrists and Technologists for diagnosis, treatment planning, precise execution of the radiation therapy and on-going patient management. The Department is equipped with a full range of state-of-the-art radiation therapy equipment, computer planning systems and quality assurance technology.
Linear Accelerators with Multileaf Collimation, and Electronic Portal Imaging for real time quality assurance of the region receiving radiation. Each accelerator is equipped with three photon and a full set of electron energy beams.
Computerized treatment planning system with CT/MRI/PET fusion and virtual fluoroscopy. This comprehensive system allows for both CT- based 3-Dimensional and Intensity Modulated Radiation Treatment (IMRT) planning.
CT simulator with a moveable lasers system for precise patient set up.