Radiotherapy has come a long way since it was first used to treat cancer around the turn of the 20^th century. Enhancements in technology, increased knowledge of radiation and the benefits of decades of medical research have enabled treatments to be far more effective.

Among the great strides forward was the invention of stereotactic radiosurgery. This technique and the term itself were both devised by Swedish neuroscientist Lars Leksell in the 1960s. His great innovation was Gamma Knife, a device still very much in use today.

The aim of the Gamma Knife, as well as other devices that offer stereotactic radiosurgery, was to concentrate beams of very intense radiation with great precision on specific areas. This had its most obvious use when treating brain tumours. The benefits were as follows:

• A high dosage could be accurately aimed at a small tumour to help shrink it effectively
• The intensity of the beam meant the dose could be delivered sooner, making sessions and the course of treatment shorter
• The precision not only meant the target area could be hit accurately, but the exposure of healthy tissue surrounding the tumour to radiation could be minimised, limiting the side effects.

These attributes made the Gamma knife and other stereotactic radiotherapy devices extremely effective in dealing with some of the most awkwardly located cancers.

Brain cancer is a prime example of tumours in a sensitive location, but there are other instances in which minimising exposure to sensitive organs around the body is highly beneficial.

How Has Stereotactic Radiosurgery Advanced?

The development of stereotactic radiotherapy has been advanced by a series of further innovations:

• Refinements to the Gamma Knife
• The development of other devices and technology, such as Truebeam Radiotherapy
• The use of improved scanning technology to guide the devices, including 3D scans

In addition to these, artificial intelligence (AI) is now starting to make its presence felt.

The use of AI across many areas of society and the economy is hotly debated, but it is already proving very useful in oncology, not least in diagnostics, as it has proved very effective in spotting signs of disease in scans.

However, it has other uses as well and one of those is in assisting advanced technologies such as TrueBeam.

What Is TrueBeam Radiotherapy?

The TrueBeam system uses a hybrid linear accelerator to produce the beams of radiation that are then delivered with pinpoint accuracy to the target area.

It is aided by several advanced image guidance systems and uses a digital platform, deploying the most sophisticated and complex technology with the goal of delivering radiation to the tumour with unparalleled precision.

Another feature of the device is the capacity to modulate the radiation beam, which means various dosages and intensities of radiation can be aimed at different areas on the tumour.

This makes it advanced enough on its own, but the use of AI can take things further. All over the world, it is being used to aid TrueBeam.

How Has AI Been Used To Assist TrueBeam?

A recent example that made a few headlines was that of the AI-supported TrueBeam system now in use in the Aga Khan University Hospital in Kenya, Business Day reported.

The AI-assisted treatment planning is combined with motion tracking and real-time imaging to direct the beams with extreme accuracy levels. As well as being more precise, it is halving the average treatment session time from 20 minutes to ten.

Commenting on the use of the AI-backed TrueBeam system, the hospital’s head of radiotherapy, Dr Angela Waweru, said: “This allows us to treat tumours with unmatched accuracy and minimise damage to nearby organs, resulting in fewer side effects and faster recovery.”

Other features include synchronised treatment using motion management technology that can adjust the delivery of the radiation to tumours around the lungs, which move as the patient breathes.

This means that although the position of the tumour will vary, the machine will anticipate this and ensure it is continually directing the radiation at the target location.

Since the system was installed at the hospital last year, around 400 patients have been treated with it.

The provision of TrueBeam is particularly significant in Africa, where advanced cancer facilities are rare, but it is still at the cutting edge here in Europe, even alongside all the other modern technology and expertise that is in place.

How Can We Establish The Best Stereotactic Treatment Method For You?

If you need stereotactic radiosurgery, we can provide it using the most sophisticated methods available, be it TrueBeam, a Gamma Knife or any other means of delivery.

In consultation with our expert staff, we can establish both the right treatment methods and schedule to suit your particular circumstances and the specific details of your diagnosis, ensuring the best possible treatment to maximise the prospect of the best outcome.

Learn more about our advanced stereotactic radiosurgery treatments for different cancers on the Amethyst Group website.

In general, early diagnosis is a key factor in improving the prognosis of any cancer treatment, but nowhere is this more apparent than in colorectal cancer.

March is Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month, and given how many people it affects and just how important early diagnosis is to maximising the access and availability of treatments, awareness is extremely vital.

Everyone plays their role in fighting cancer, from clinics that specialise in state-of-the-art treatments to people who have been diagnosed, their family, friends, loved ones and anyone who spreads the word to raise awareness and inspire people to get themselves checked out.

Like many types of cancer, it can be difficult to see the early signs, but in the interest of public health, here are some of the early signs to look out for, the importance of early screening and how it works, how it would be diagnosed and how we would typically treat it.

What Is Colorectal Cancer?

Colorectal cancer, also known as bowel cancer, is any cancer that affects the colon or rectum, which together form the large intestine and the final part of the digestive system. This does not include the anus following the rectum, nor the small intestine which absorbs nutrients from food.

The large intestine typically absorbs water from food and drink, and anything that cannot be digested is moved to the rectum, where it is removed from the body. It is a very important part of the body, and bowel cancer can have major effects on people’s lives.

Exactly how serious it is depends on how it spreads, your overall digestive health and how the cancer growth has developed. Early-stage bowel cancer is often easier to treat and can significantly improve patient outcomes.

Early Signs Of Bowel Cancer

As with many early signs of cancer, a one-off or short-term occurrence of any of these symptoms may not be a sign of cancer, as some of them are particularly common and often have other causes.

However, if you cannot account for any of these or you have any of these symptoms for three weeks or more, consult a doctor.

• Sudden changes in your bowel movements, such as needing to go to the toilet more or less often than normal, in a way that is very easily noticeable.
• Constipation if that is not normal for you, or otherwise feeling like you need to go to the toilet even after you have been.
• Diarrhoea if that is not typical for you, nor can be explained by your diet.
• Stomach aches.
• Bloating feelings.
• A lump in your stomach.
• Bleeding from your bottom
• Blood in your stool, which is typically red but may be black.
• Fatigue and shortness of breath, which can be signs of colorectal cancer-caused anaemia.
• Weight loss that is not otherwise accounted for.

How Is Colorectal Cancer Diagnosed?

The first stage of diagnosis is to consult a doctor, typically a GP, who will discuss your symptoms with you, explain the possible causes, examine your medical and family history to see if you are at further risk, and rule out any other medical conditions.

They will also typically examine you, usually through a rectal examination, to check for lumps or anything else unusual that could be a sign of colorectal cancer.

If there are any concerns, they will typically arrange for a series of tests of your blood and stool in order to check for unusual markers that would be characteristic of cancer.

These include a faecal immunochemical test (FIT) or a test for inflammation in the bowel itself.

How Does Colorectal Cancer Screening Work?

There is also a national bowel cancer screening programme in the UK, offered to anyone aged between 50 and 74.

This test, which can be done at home, is an FIT test that checks for potential early warning signs of cancer. Once again, the earlier it is detected, the more options there are for treatment, and there is far greater potential for less invasive treatments to be effective.

How Is Colorectal Cancer Treated?

The treatment options for colorectal cancer will depend on where the cancer originated and was found. Bowel cancer is typically divided into:

• Colon cancer, which originates in the large intestine.
• Rectal cancer, which starts in the rectum and the back passage.

As both are very common and can vary considerably depending on how they progress, your treatment plan can vary considerably, although radiotherapy and chemotherapy are often options either individually or together.

Sometimes this takes the form of external beam radiotherapy, whilst in other cases it can involve the use of internal radiotherapy implants in a treatment known as brachytherapy.

Learn more about our advanced radiotherapy and neurosurgical treatments for colorectal cancer, as well as other cancers, on the Amethyst Group website.

The use of private radiotherapy has proved invaluable in treating a myriad of different types of cancer over the years. What was originally no more than a palliative treatment can now greatly extend life or even fully cure a wide range of cancers.

Among the many changes to cancer care have been a growing understanding of how radiation works, improved scanning and diagnosis, as well as enhanced technology to provide doses in a more optimal way, all leading to better patient outcomes.

At the same time, however, the types of cancer being treated have varied and will continue to do so. Some have become less common, while others have increased in frequency.

Why Do Some Non-Smokers Get Lung Cancer?

However, while lung cancer is commonly associated with smoking, it is not always the case that a sufferer is a current or even past smoker. There is a rising tide of lung cancer among non-smokers that requires its own approach to diagnostics, risk assessment and treatment.

A non-smoker may suffer the disease because of extensive passive smoking by being in a smoky environment, but, increasingly, these situations are rare outside the homes of smokers, as many countries have banned smoking indoors in public places.

However, as the European Medical Journal (EMJ) has highlighted, there is a specific group whose lung cancers owe nothing to smoking.

Those who tend to be affected by this form of lung cancer are more likely to have the following characteristics:

• Women
• Asian
• Genetic vulnerabilities and mutations that increase the influence of factors such as air pollution and inflammatory conditions

Because these do not correlate closely with the people commonly associated with a high risk of lung cancer, in particular, the lack of a smoking habit, the journal noted that this means an early diagnosis is more likely to be missed.

This means it is more likely that patients will need radiotherapy for secondary cancer as metastasis will have had more time to take place, while for some, only palliative options remain. As with all cancers, early diagnosis improves the patient’s prospects.

However, efforts to increase knowledge of this condition may themselves aid an improvement in patient outcomes by producing greater awareness and with it more early diagnoses.

How Does Radiotherapy Tackle Lung Cancer?

Once a diagnosis has been made, the question of what role radiotherapy may play in treatment comes next.

As the EMJ article noted, the genetic predisposition that increases the vulnerability of some to non-smoker lung cancer, with the “high rate of targetable mutations and distinct immune features”, makes the use of targeted therapy drugs a part of many treatment programmes.

However, treatment courses are not always a matter of either/or treatment options, with different methods of fighting cancer being used in tandem.

Indeed, studies have shown that radiotherapy can often be used in concert with other therapies and may even make them more effective.

Lung cancer is classified in two ways – small cell (SCLC) and non-small cell (NSCLC), but both can be treated using radiotherapy. Non-smokers with lung cancer are more likely to suffer NSCLC, which accounts for more than eight out of ten lung cancer cases.

How Is Radiotherapy Used According To Different Lung Cancer Types?

In the case of NSCLC, surgery is often the first resort, as the larger cells make them an easier target for surgeons to seek to excise tumours and cells. Radiotherapy is then given afterwards, which aims to tackle remaining cells or any parts of tumours still present.

This form of radiotherapy is known as adjuvant radiotherapy, whereas stereotactic ablative radiotherapy is a type of precisely-targeted radiotherapy used instead of surgery for NSCLC.

In SCLC cases, radiotherapy and chemotherapy are both commonly used. In different cases, radiotherapy may be given before, after, or alongside chemotherapy.

These variations in cancer type and different treatment approaches highlight how important it is to treat every patient as an individual. This becomes even more important in the case of a non-smoker with lung cancer.

It may be an unusual form of the disease, but we will be ready to respond by providing the right treatment, aiming to give you or your loved one the best possible outcome.

Learn more about our advanced radiotherapy treatments for lung cancer on the Amethyst Group website.

Some kinds of cancer are less prevalent than they used to be. Reduced smoking rates have cut lung cancer rates, while awareness of the risks of sun exposure has reduced skin cancer frequency. But other cancers have increased.

Colorectal cancer is one such category, with instances of the disease on the rise across the globe.

The American Cancer Society predicted last year that there would be more than 154,000 diagnoses of the disease across the US, slightly up from its 2024 forecasts.

Forecasts of a rising incidence of gastrointestinal cancer in the US were backed up by a study by JAMA that showed not only were cases on the rise, but the increase was particularly focused on younger people.

Colorectal cancer in adults under 40 was up 3.4 per cent over the course of the decade, while pancreatic and gastric cancers were also up.

What Factors Increase The Risk Of Colorectal Cancer?

Speaking about these findings on the ABC Good Morning America show last year, the show’s medical correspondent, Dr Darien Sutton, listed several increased risk factors that were leading to higher incidences of gastrointestinal cancers:

• Obesity
• The consumption of highly processed foods
• High consumption levels of sugary drinks
• High levels of alcohol consumption
• Increasingly sedentary lifestyles
• Smoking

While the last of these may be less common than years ago, the others are not. However, it is clear that alongside not smoking, factors like more exercise, less alcohol and a healthy diet with more fibre and less red meat reduce risk, points Dr Sutton emphasised.

How is the Age Profile Of Colorectal Cancer Patients Changing?

American Cancer Society figures for 2025 highlighted just how skewed the increase was towards younger patients in the US.

The annual increase in colorectal cancer rates between 2012 and 2021 was 2.4 per cent in those aged under 50, but just 0.4 per cent for those in the 50-64 age range.

A key point to note was that the trends seen in the US echoed those around the world, where similar causal factors have been at play.

For example, an international study published in The Lancet in early 2025 highlighted the rising colorectal cancer incidence among younger adults in high-income Western countries.

However, while colorectal cancer is a rising problem around the world, especially in more affluent countries where lifestyles are more sedentary and the consumption of potentially harmful foods and beverages like red meat and sugary drinks is higher, there is good news.

While delivering its prediction of rising case numbers in 2025, the American Cancer Society noted that since the 1970s, patient outcomes for those with these forms of cancer had been steadily improving, partly thanks to more screening and lifestyle changes.

However, we may also consider just how radiotherapy has played a role in improved outcomes by noting how it can help to treat colorectal cancers and why treatments are now more effective than in the past.

On the one hand, the basics of radiotherapy remain the same as ever: The radiation disrupts the DNA of cancer cells, which breaks them down and prevents them from replicating. However, improvements in technology and scanning have made this process more precise.

How Is Radiotherapy Given For Colorectal Cancer?

Radiotherapy is usually delivered as external beam radiotherapy; specialised internal/contact techniques may be used in selected cases.

External beam therapy is given via a machine such as a LINAC machine, with the patient lying prone while the beams of radiation penetrate the skin to target the cancerous area.

This is often delivered in the form of intensity-modulated radiotherapy, which varies the strength of the beams of radiation to concentrate the higher doses on the cancer cells, while limiting the radiation exposure for the surrounding healthy tissue.

Brachytherapy involves a radioactive substance being placed inside the body, in this case, the colorectal area, to deliver the radiation. Two types can be used:

• High dose rate brachytherapy, which is often given after external therapy
• Low-energy contact brachytherapy, sometimes known as Papillon treatment, which is used as an alternative to surgery for cases of rectal cancer that have been detected very early

Any course of radiotherapy will come with side effects, although a benefit of intensity-modulated radiotherapy is that it reduces these because it limits the exposure in healthy tissue.

Nonetheless, some side effects will be common, such as

• Fatigue
• Hair loss
• Nausea

Usually, these are temporary effects that wear off after treatment ends and younger patients will be better able to withstand the rigours of such treatment.

The best news about radiotherapy treatment for colorectal cancer is that, if detected early enough, this is a form of cancer that may often be removed entirely with a full recovery for patients.

Learn more about our advanced radiotherapy treatments for colorectal cancers on the Amethyst Group website.

Prostate cancer is one of the most common forms of cancer to specifically affect men. According to the latest data, it accounts for just over 12 per cent of cancer cases in the European Economic Area and particularly affects men over the age of 45.

In addition, some ethnic groups are particularly prone to the disease, with black men at the highest risk. However, no racial group can be classed as ‘low risk’. The disease is curable, provided it is diagnosed at an early stage.

The fact that prostate cancer is so common does mean it has attracted a lot of attention, time and money for research into the disease and its treatments. This means that if you are a sufferer, you may have more treatment options open to you than you might be aware of.

If you are not happy with your current or proposed treatment, you may be keen on alternatives, not least if that means choosing radiotherapy over physical surgery. While surgery seeks to remove tumours and cancerous tissue, radiotherapy uses radiation to disrupt the DNA of cancer cells, destroying them and preventing cell replication.

What Is Involved In Prostate Cancer Surgery?

Going under the knife to have a tumour or even the whole prostate removed is a recognised and well-established treatment and it can be very effective. However, it has several potential downsides:

• Urinary dysfunction, including incontinence
• Negative changes to the experience of orgasm in sex
• Loss of fertility
• Erectile dysfunction
• Lymphedema, a painful swelling in the legs or around the genitals

Such consequences mean that whatever the surgery achieves for the overall patient prognosis, there can be a significant deterioration in quality of life.

This alone might make radiotherapy sound like an alternative worth considering. But this will only be useful if it can be shown to be at least as effective in achieving its primary purpose of tackling the cancer itself.

What Are The Side Effects Of Radiotherapy For Prostate Cancer?

Moreover, radiotherapy for prostate cancer is also not without its possible side effects and long-term issues. These include:

• Fatigue (short-term)
• Issues with urinary, bowel and ejaculatory function (both short and long-term)
• Infertility (long-term)
• Erectile dysfunction (long-term)

There is more than one kind of radiotherapy, however, which means there are multiple options for using it to treat prostate cancer. Finding the best option for each patient is important for achieving the best possible outcomes.

What Research Supports Stereotactic Body Radiotherapy For Prostate Cancer?

An increasing body of research evidence is available to show that stereotactic body radiotherapy may be an effective and increasingly preferred option to deliver radiotherapy treatment to prostate cancer sufferers.

The latest study to show this comes from a Phase III trial held by University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust in the UK.

It carried out a study that compared the outcomes from a cohort of men who had five days of daily high-dosage stereotactic treatment to those of another group who underwent more standard radiotherapy treatment consisting of 20 sessions over four weeks.

The key finding of the trial was that the stereotactic radiotherapy produced results that were just as positive on average as those delivered by the longer courses of radiotherapy.

Consultant clinical oncologist at the trust, Andrew Chan, called the findings “a pivotal, practice-changing result”, as it meant that “for this highly prevalent cancer we are able to reduce radiotherapy treatment to only a quarter of the current standard – from 20 days to five days – with the same clinical benefits.”

This approach can have some great advantages for patients. Firstly, it is more practical as you only need to spare a few days to get it done, rather than a month.

Considering that the side-effects of radiotherapy can make you feel tired and unwell, this means you spend less time suffering and get the side-effects out of the way sooner.

What Are The Main Benefits Of Stereotactic Body Radiotherapy?

For selected patients with localised prostate cancer, stereotactic body radiotherapy is also likely to produce fewer side effects precisely because it is designed to focus the radiation on very precise areas, which means it not only blasts the cancerous tissue with higher doses of radiation, but greatly reduces the radiation exposure for adjacent, healthy tissue.

The term stereotactic radiosurgery was coined in the 1960s by Lars Leksell, the Swedish neuroscientist who invented the Gamma Knife, a device commonly used in tackling brain tumours.

The brain is a prime example of an organ in which exposure of healthy tissue to radiation needs to be minimised, but this benefit can also apply to other parts of the body.

Stereotactic body radiotherapy is one option that may be considered for eligible patients with prostate cancer, following assessment by a specialist clinical team

Learn more about our advanced radiotherapy treatments for prostate cancer on the Amethyst Group website.