Course Report

Image-guided and adaptive radiotherapy - PDF Version

5-8 October 2021, online course

Course director:

Coen Rasch, radiation oncologist, Leiden University Medical Centre, The Netherlands

Could you please briefly introduce yourself?

My name is Ina Katerina Nilo, and I am a radiation therapist (RTT). I studied radiation therapy in Oregon Health and Science University, USA, and I am currently working in the University Hospital of Zurich in Switzerland.

Why did you choose to attend this course?

I chose to attend this course for multiple reasons. Our field is continuously developing and it is important to continue with our education and to keep up with the latest technologies, modalities and ways to treat our patients. I am specifically interested in image-guided radiotherapy (IGRT) and adaptive radiation therapy, because in our department we are in the process of upgrading our IGRT protocols.

What aspects of the course were the most interesting and why?

The most interesting aspect was the interdisciplinary nature of the course, because in radiation oncology, team-working is an essential part of the job.

Did the course activities improve your knowledge and skills in the relevant subject?

The course and the activities helped me to broaden my knowledge, especially as I heard about how things were done in different hospitals/countries.

Did the course meet your expectations? If so, how?

I would say the course met my expectations because it was well structured. The organisers were able to cover most of the treatment sites, which type of IGRT was ideal for each site and why. They also did a great job in covering all adaptive radiation methods, from adaptation that is guided by MRI, to new adaptive linear accelerators (Linacs) and use of normal Linacs with the plan of the day.

List three important ‘takeaways’ following the course.

• Adaptive radiation is where we should be heading.
• IGRT should always be updated and fine-tuned.
• The RTT’s role will change a lot in the next few years.

How will what you have learnt be implemented in your daily job/ clinical practice?

We have not implemented anything yet, but we are in the process of updating our protocols.

How would you encourage someone who has never been to a course run by the European SocieTy for Radiotherapy and Oncology (ESTRO) to join this course next year/ in two years?

It is a great course to attend in order to learn what other clinics all over the world are doing and to compare what they are doing with the practice in one’s own clinic. It is also good to meet some great people in our field.

Ina Katerina Nilo
Radiation therapist (MTRA)
University Hospital of Zurich
Zurich, Switzerland
ina.nilo@usz.ch