THE SOUTHERN Philippine Medical Center (SPMC) Department of Radiological and Imaging Sciences performed its first case of stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) using advanced linear accelerator technology on Feb 9, 2026, at the Radiation Oncology Annex.
SPMC utilized a cutting-edge “Elekta Versa HD” device on a 27-year-old patient who has been diagnosed with Meningioma, a tumor primarily found in the brain.
This milestone became the first SRS procedure carried out in a government hospital outside of Manila.
SRS, as well as stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT), is a non-surgical and highly precise radiation therapy that sends out high-dose radiation to tumors located in the brain, spine, or other parts of the body.
The government hospital became one of the seven Cancer Centers set up by the Department of Health (DOH), providing a linear accelerator, treatment planning system, CT Simulator, and HDR Brachytherapy Unit on Apr 25, 2016.
Last Mar 25, 2022, former president Rodrigo Roa Duterte inaugurated the Cancer Diagnostic Institute Building and the Cancer Treatment Facility Building.
Duterte also granted SPMC’s request for a new linear accelerator machine due to the high volume of patients.
