William Thoms, MD

New radiation therapy technology at Wellstar Paulding Medical Center doubles the hospital’s availability for radiation treatment and expanded cancer care for the region.

Wellstar Paulding added a new radiation vault, which houses a second linear accelerator. The TrueBeam technology delivers high-precision doses of radiation with flexible treatment options, including the capability to change the size and shape of beams to mimic the tumor shape and minimize exposure to surrounding tissue. 

The linear accelerator can shorten the time of each treatment and for some patients, may reduce the number of treatments needed. Adding a second linear accelerator enables the cancer care team at Wellstar Paulding to double availability for radiation treatment, offering more convenient appointment times for patients. 

“It gives us the versatility to address many different cancer situations in a more efficient way,” said Dr. William Thoms, the radiation oncology medical director for Wellstar Paulding. “The time of each treatment can be reduced, and the potential to accomplish the mission in fewer treatments is also there. We have the capability of targeting treatment so we can minimize injury to normal tissue.”

The linear accelerator is well-suited for treating cases where minimizing damage to normal tissue is especially important, such as in the brain, spinal cord or organs where a patient has previously received radiation treatment, according to Dr. Thoms.

As Wellstar Paulding expands its cancer care services, the new linear accelerator will also be used for stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT), which has not previously been offered in Paulding County. This method can treat tumors anywhere in the body with highly targeted, high-dose radiation. Because it uses multiple X-ray beams coming from different angles, as well as high treatment precision, surrounding normal tissues are spared.

Learn more about cancer care at Wellstar Paulding Medical Center.