PRESQUE ISLE, Maine — Leaders from TAMC, the community, and the local patient support group Caring Area Neighbors for Cancer Education and Recovery (C-A-N-C-E-R) were among the more than 200 supporters who gathered Saturday to break ground on a new space at TAMC’s A.R. Gould Memorial Hospital campus designed to improve and expand treatment at Aroostook Cancer Care.
Numerous cancer survivors, others currently being treated, and friends and family who form their support network came together outside the facility just prior to the weekend’s inaugural Color Me Pink 5K Run/Walk. Before participants made their way through downtown Presque Isle on foot, they officially launched the effort to create a new, comprehensive, state-of-the-art cancer treatment center at the hospital.
Construction work to replace an aging radiation therapy linear accelerator, improve and expand treatment areas, and create a more home-like or private surrounding to accommodate medical and family needs gets under way this week. TAMC is embarking on a project to co-locate and modernize the radiation department and the existing medical oncology/hematology practice within the Aroostook Cancer Care Center.
TAMC will be installing a new, state-of-the-art linear accelerator, which provides radiation therapy used to shrink tumors for cancer patients. The hospital has the only linear accelerator in northern Maine, without which County patients in need of radiation therapy would be required to travel to Bangor. However, the current machine is nearing the end of its lifespan and needs to be replaced.
A linear accelerator speeds electrons toward a target to generate a radiation beam aimed at a patient’s tumor. Many patients at TAMC are treated using a technique called Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy (IMRT). For an IMRT treatment with the current equipment at TAMC, the beam is targeted through a series of custom-made molds for each patient’s tumor. A series of seven to nine molds are created for each patient, and those molds are manually changed throughout each treatment to ensure the tumor is always targeted and that the healthy tissue is protected. While effective, this procedure is time consuming.
With the new Varian linear accelerator, IMRT treatments are performed using a computer controlled mechanism called a multi-leaf collimator, which continually shapes the radiation beam and varies the intensity in real time, meaning improved care and convenience for patients.
“As good as the current molds are, the multi-leaf collimator is safer and more precise,” said Randy Bacon, manager of TAMC’s imaging services. “It will allow much faster treatment for patients. Instead of a therapist having to come into the room nine times during treatment to change the mold and adjust the positioning of the machine, the machine moves in a continuous sweep, changing and adjusting the shape and intensity of the beam throughout the treatment.”
The new linear accelerator will also be capable of advanced treatments such as Image Guided Radiotherapy (IGRT), Stereotactic Body Radiotherapy (SBRT) and Stereotactic Radiosurgery (SRS). These new capabilities mean more accurate treatments that can be accomplished in fewer visits, minimizing radiation damage to healthy tissue, and improving patient outcomes, according to Bacon.
TAMC also plans to implement new electronic medical record (EMR) and treatment planning systems that are fully integrated with the linear accelerator, eliminating the need for paper records. The full integration of computer software and equipment will mean that once a treatment plan is made it will automatically communicate that plan to the linear accelerator enabling a 100 percent accurate treatment.
For additional patient convenience, the Dr. Christopher Seitz Radiation Oncology Suite, which will house the new linear accelerator, will be located adjacent to Aroostook Cancer Care, rather than on the ground level of the hospital as it currently is. The placement of the new unit in this location also means that there will be no disruption to patient treatments when the hospital is ready to transition from the old to the new. Patients can be treated on the current linear accelerator right up until the new machine is ready to be put into use, which is anticipated to happen in early 2015.
The vault, which will house the new piece of equipment, will be added to the southerly side of TAMC’s East Annex building. It will consist of concrete walls and a concrete roof up to eight feet thick which prevents radiation from escaping.
“With the redesign of the Aroostook Cancer Care footprint, time efficiency for patients will be improved as patients receiving concurrent radiation and chemotherapy will not have to travel to another area of the hospital to receive these services,” Brenda Baker, manager of Aroostook Cancer Care, told those gathered for the ceremony. “Currently patients often need to have early appointments in one department or the other to receive both treatments in a timely manner. Any delay, in one area or the other, causes disruption of patient schedules and sometimes leads to patients being here later in the day.”
According to Dr. John Mullen, TAMC radiation oncologist, the new linear accelerator technology will impact many in The County, since it is estimated that radiation therapy will be used in 60-70 percent of cancer patients at some time during the course of their treatment.
“Radiation therapy is usually delivered five days per week anywhere from two to eight weeks depending upon the specific type and stage of the cancer. It is therefore important, especially for patients, that the radiation treatment facility be relatively close to their homes for both convenience and to decrease the cost to the patient for travel and lodging expenses,” said Mullen. “The new facility to be constructed will be an up-to-date center where treatments will be faster and the associated side effects will be decreased. With the addition of new and better treatments, more County patients than ever before will be able to stay local for all of their cancer treatment.”
In addition to radiation therapy, nearly 250 patients a month are receiving medical oncology and hematology services through Aroostook Cancer Care. For many, this requires multiple trips to the center each week and hours sitting in a treatment chair. To help make this experience a little more bearable, an atrium area is being created that will provide a beautiful new environment for cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy.
“With the new waiting room, exam rooms, radiation and infusion suites, patients and caregivers have been considered, and the space designed to improve patient/caregiver comfort and safety,” said Baker.
Speaking on behalf of C-A-N-C-E-R, Susan Nickerson, president of the non-profit organization, shared her thoughts about the technological improvements.
“When I was treated for breast cancer in 2003, I had to drive to Bangor every day for the treatment. Fortunately, I was able to do that, but it was very difficult, and for some, it is just not an option,” said Nickerson. “It is wonderful to have an opportunity to have this level of care right here at home.”
Also speaking at the ground-breaking ceremony was chair of TAMC’s board of trustees Gene Lynch II.
“TAMC has always led the way in our region when it comes to cancer and other specialty care services. Today, we take the next step in bringing the most technologically advanced and comprehensive care that has ever been available to cancer patients in our area,” said Lynch. “The board of trustees and leadership team — both here at TAMC and at a system-level with EMHS, the statewide health care organization that TAMC is a vital member of — are committed to offering this high level and top quality of care right here in Aroostook County. We wrap the latest technology with a most caring and competent team of providers and other health care professionals.”
A&L Construction of Presque Isle has been awarded the bid as general contractor. Soderberg Construction of Caribou will be completing the earthwork. Subcontractors working on the project include Aroostook Plumbing and Heating of Presque Isle, and County Electric, Sullivan’s Floor Covering, and Staples Construction, all of Caribou. The concrete work — which is significant given the vault that will be constructed — will be completed by Hogan Construction of Houlton.
