The Department of Radiation Oncology at Willis Knighton Cancer Center in Shreveport, Louisiana, USA opened in 1997. Since then, innovation has been at the core of their community oncology practice. The department became one of the first in the nation to offer solutions now regarded as standard, such as image-guided radiation therapy (IGRT) and intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT). They continued building on this legacy, becoming the first site in the world to deliver stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) for lung tumors on a helical delivery system, installing the world’s first commercial compact pencil beam scanning proton therapy system in 2014, and most recently, launching their Nuclear Oncology Division dedicated to radiotheranostics.

The challenge: keeping patients close to home

Before Willis Knighton Cancer Center started with these dedicated programs, patients in the Shreveport area often had to travel out of state, sometimes three to four hours each way, to access specialized radiosurgery, placing a significant burden on them and their families.

The response: building a robust SRS program in state

To keep treatment closer to home for even more patients, Willis Knighton Cancer Center expanded its services to include linac-based radiosurgery, giving patients in the local community access to advanced treatment capabilities. In 2016, Willis Knighton acquired Brainlab ExacTrac and Elements Multiple Brain Mets SRS. That investment marked the starting point of a radiosurgery program that has grown steadily in both volume and clinical scope.

The department went on to add further Brainlab Elements functional and vascular workflows, expanding its capabilities to treat not only patients with multiple brain metastases but also other indications such as trigeminal neuralgia and arteriovenous malformations (AVMs). Integrating these multi-modal contouring tools enabled them to work efficiently across the different specialties, including nuclear oncology and radiology.

Today, the team performs over 50 stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) cases every year, using Brainlab Elements radiosurgery solutions for treatment planning and ExacTrac for precise patient positioning and monitoring across their two treatment machines.

As the team treated more and more patients with multiple brain metastases, retreatment became an important part of clinical practice. To support these increasingly complex cases, Willis Knighton Cancer Center added Brainlab Elements Retreatment Review to assess previous and planned treatments.

“Having intuitive dose summation tools like Elements Retreatment Review helps guide our treatment planning to ensure that we can manage these challenging cases optimally.” - Yohan Walter, MS, DABR, DABSNM, SRS Physics Lead, Chief of Radiation Physics Research, and Director of Nuclear Oncology Physics at Willis Knighton Cancer Center

The impact: rapid, precise and closer to home

The most tangible result is access. Willis Knighton Cancer Center is now delivering rapid, precise treatment across the full range of cranial indications using Brainlab solutions. Complex cases that were previously out of scope, like trigeminal neuralgia and AVMs, are now routine for the center.

Figure: Heat map illustrating the geographic reach of the Willis Knighton radiosurgery program: nearly 60% of patients live within 20 miles (32 km) of the cancer center.

In their words: “When we started this program in 2016, our goal was keeping patients in state for the best-in-class care they deserve. Today, with Brainlab technology guiding every step of planning and delivery, we're treating conditions we couldn't have taken on a few years ago, such as trigeminal neuralgia, AVMs or multiple brain metastases with the same precision you'd find at any bigger center. What means the most to me is seeing patients go home the same day, close to their families, instead of managing a diagnosis hundreds of miles from everything familiar to them.”  - Chiachien Jake Wang, MD, PhD, Radiation Oncologist and Clinical Chief of Nuclear Oncology at Willis Knighton Cancer Center

Why it matters

Willis Knighton Cancer Center has built a respected regional radiosurgery program, having treated over 300 SRS patients across a broad range of conditions.

The statements made by the clinicians represent their personal opinions and experiences. These statements may not be supported by scientific evidence or peer-reviewed research. For verified information about any device mentioned, please refer to the manufacturer's official documentation.