What is SBRT?

Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy (SBRT) is an advanced radiotherapy technique used to treat solid tumors by delivering high doses of radiation to cancer cells at sub-millimeter precision. This allows treatment to be completed in 1-5 sessions, unlike in conventional radiation therapy (which requires multiple visits).

Despite significant improvements in treatment outcomes, communicating the details of SBRT to patients remains a challenge.

For instance, most cancer centers across Canada still rely on static, text-based, or verbal explanations for patient education. As such, many patients struggle to grasp the highly technical nature of SBRT and what their experience may look like. That, compounded with the inherent stress of undergoing cancer treatment, illustrates the need for improved patient education that fit within the modern age (i.e. modern digital information-seeking habits/preferences).

Goal: Modernizing patient education.

SBRT & Me is an online patient education resource designed to support patients and their loved ones in understanding and getting familiar with their SBRT treatment experience. The multimedia website presents various patient topics such as how SBRT treatment works, learning about the types of SBRT machines that may be used, and all aspects of the treatment process from start-to-finish.

Information is also tailored to the patient’s specific treatment area including SBRT to the lung (chest), abdomen, and pelvis, so learners can gain information that is most relevant to them. The digital medium replaces traditional, text-heavy materials by integrating interactive graphics, animations, and patient-friendly visualizations to help patients engage with the learning content in an easy-to-understand format.