Novalis Circle User Meeting Showcases Advances in Stereotactic Radiosurgery

WESTCHESTER, Ill., Sept. 18 /PRNewswire/ -- The Novalis Circle, a global network of clinicians dedicated to the advancements of radiosurgery, gathered 140 physicians from around the world at its 4th International Conference in Santa Barbara, California, to share their expertise, clinical experiences and treatment protocols in radiosurgery and radiotherapy.

Members of the Novalis Circle include neurosurgeons, radiation oncologists, medical oncologists, medical physicists, radiation therapists and nursing staff that refer to or utilize Novalis(R) Shaped Beam Surgery and the new Novalis Tx(TM) platform. These highly-precise systems help physicians treat patients facing malignant and benign lesions of the brain, head, neck, and body; arteriovenous malformations; and functional diseases such as trigeminal neuralgia with a non-invasive method.

Dr. Antonio A.F. De Salles, professor of neurosurgery at the University of California at Los Angeles David Geffen School of Medicine, chaired and hosted the meeting together with his fellow physicians Dr. Michael Selch and Dr. Nzhde Agazaryan. The meeting provided a venue for 53 scientific presentations together with intensive training and discussion among Novalis Circle members.

"Novalis Circle offers clinicians a high powered network that promotes communication, clinical collaboration, development of new ideas and treatment techniques, and joint scientific research to improve results achieved with radiosurgery," said Dr. De Salles, who was the first physician in the world to use the Novalis Shaped Beam Surgery system in 1998.

Discussions focused heavily on frameless stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) and the benefits of the Novalis Tx platform. Frameless SRS involves the creation of a non-invasive facemask cast from the patient's face and head to stabilize the patient and prevent movement during treatments. Frameless patient positioning using Image-Guided Radiotherapy (IGRT) makes treatment faster without compromising the high precision.

The next International Conference of the Novalis Circle is scheduled for 2010. For more information on Novalis Circle, please visit http://www.novaliscircle.org.

About Novalis Circle

The Novalis Circle is a worldwide network of clinicians dedicated to the advancement of radiosurgery. Novalis users represent the leading edge in radiosurgery and their participation in the Novalis Circle represents their strong commitment to improving healthcare. The Novalis Circle provides a communication and collaboration network for developing new ideas and optimizing treatments that will continue to change the face of cancer treatment.