Port Moresby General Hospital installs Papua New Guinea’s first linear accelerator

Port Moresby General Hospital has installed the first Halcyon linear accelerator radiotherapy machine in Papua New Guinea. This new technology, part of the hospital’s Comprehensive Cancer Centre, utilizes artificial intelligence to direct radiation precisely at cancer cells while minimizing damage to surrounding healthy tissue.

Dr. Paki Molumi, CEO of Port Moresby General Hospital, noted that this advancement is a significant upgrade from the older cobalt-based radiotherapy equipment used at Angau Memorial Hospital in Lae, which can cause more extensive damage to skin and muscle during treatment. Unlike cobalt sources, the linear accelerator produces radiation via electricity only during active treatment.

The Comprehensive Cancer Centre aims to provide radiotherapy, chemotherapy, brachytherapy for cervical cancer, and nuclear medicine services. The project is being implemented in phases due to funding constraints, with an estimated total cost of K300 million. The first machine is expected to treat between 30 and 60 patients daily. A second machine, a Varian TrueBeam system, is planned for installation in 2027, pending available funding, with the full centre targeted for completion by 2030.