Asian Hospital’s CyberKnife tracks tumours in real time

The robotic radiosurgery system cuts cancer treatment from 30 to five sessions.

Manila-based Asian Hospital and Medical Center is introducing a radiotherapy technology that can track cancerous tumours in real time by adjusting to natural body movements like breathing and digestion.

The CyberKnife technology, set to launch in July, will be the first of its kind in the Philippines, Beaver Tamesis, Asian Hospital President and CEO, told Healthcare Asia. “The system is robotic and assisted by artificial intelligence,” he said in a Zoom interview.

If the tumour is in the lungs and moves as the patient breathes, or in the colon and shifts, the technology can adjust radiation delivery to minimise its impact on healthy tissues, he added.

Cancer was the third leading cause of death in the country in 2024, according to the local statistics agency.

Tamesis said traditional radiation techniques lack precision. For example, tumours near the eye can be risky. “A difference of just a millimetre [from the tumour] is crucial for the patient’s well-being.”

Conventional techniques like intensity-modulated radiation therapy need multiple sessions over several weeks, even though each session lasts only about 10 minutes. CyberKnife can cut treatment time from 30 sessions to as few as five.

“This is particularly beneficial for patients travelling from different provinces as they no longer need prolonged hospital stays,” Tamesis said.

Patient capacity is also expected to increase with the new tech, he said, noting that their old machine could only handle two patients daily. “Even that was a struggle.”

Tamesis said their tech investment was a major one, likening the cost to “'buying a small hospital.”

However, patient costs will be covered by the Philippines’ state health insurance provider and various health maintenance organisations. “You are paying for the treatment, not the machine.”

The Philippine Health Insurance Corp. could cover as much as 50% of the treatment cost, Tamesis said.

The machine is being installed in the hospital’s radiation therapy bunker, which has been upgraded with enhanced air-conditioning and humidity control to ensure optimal conditions.

“We’ve also improved facilities for infusion therapy, chemotherapy, immunologic therapy, and supportive treatments like transfusions,” the CEO said.

The hospital recently invested in an “all-in-one” system for tissue staining, a technique used in diagnosing diseases such as cancer.

“Our new equipment automates the process,” Tamesis said. “We are focusing on precision medicine. We want radiotherapy, drug therapy, and everything to align with the current movement towards personalised treatments.”