A man from Selsdon has become the first cancer patient in the UK to receive a new “pioneering” form of radiotherapy in Sutton.

Barry Dolling, 65, underwent the procedure which used a Magnetic Resonance Linear Accelerator (MR Linac) machine at the Royal Marsden Hospital in Downs Road.

It’s said to be the first technology in the world to “simultaneously” generate magnetic resonance images and deliver X-ray radiation beams.

This means radiotherapy can be adjusted “in real time”, making it more accurate and effective than before.

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The new MR Linac in Sutton

The project is a major collaboration between the Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust and the Institute for Cancer Research (ICR).

Having been diagnosed with prostate cancer in April this year, Mr Dolling was identified as being suitable for the PRISM clinical trial – which is the first of its kind in the UK.

He said: “I was really excited to be the first patient to be treated with the MR Linac.

“I jumped at the chance to sign onto the PRISM trial, as I believe the treatment will give me a better quality of life and minimal side-effects in comparison to other treatments.

“It’s nice to know that my treatment will help research treatments for cancer patients in the future.”

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The Duke of Cambridge with Dr Simeon Nill in the MR Linac control room

He will continue receive daily treatment for 20 days as part of the trial.

Professor Uwe Oelfke, head of the joint department of physics at the ICR and the Royal Marsden, who leads the joint MR Linac project, said: “For decades, the radiation oncology community has dreamed of the day when we could see what we treat in real time – just as our surgical colleagues do – and we are excited this day has arrived.”

It comes as the installation of the MR Linac was made possible by a huge £10 million grant from the Medical Research Council (MRC) to the ICR, with an additional boost from the Royal Marsden Cancer Charity.

But there was also funding support from Cancer Research UK and Stand Up to Cancer for the preparatory research, with backing also coming from one of the NIHR Biomedical Research Centres at the Royal Marsden and the ICR.

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The MR Linac in Sutton

Dr Alison Tree, consultant clinical oncologist at the Royal Marsden and team leader in uro-oncology clinical trials at the ICR, who is leading the PRISM clinical trial, said: “Prostate cancer responds most effectively to large doses of radiation delivered over a short period.

“However, because the prostate lies close to the rectum, high doses risk damaging the rectum and increasing side-effects.

“With the MR Linac, we can better target the prostate while avoiding the rectum so we can safely deliver higher doses of radiation.

“It’s possible that this ground-breaking precision will one day make it possible for us to cure prostate cancer in a single treatment.”

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan officially opened the MR Linac facility in 2016 and said this “marks an important milestone”.