Device problem interrupts radiotherapy sessions at Unicamp's HC Patients undergoing cancer treatment at Unicamp's Hospital de Clínicas (HC), in Campinas (SP), have faced delays in radiotherapy sessions due to the breakdown of one of the health unit's devices. According to people interviewed by EPTV, a TV Globo affiliate, the machine has been stopped for around 12 days. An employee said that the hospital has two radiotherapy equipment, only one of which is working and the other has been broken for two weeks. A patient over 70 years old, who is fighting throat cancer and preferred not to be identified, reported his anguish over the suspension of care. He needs to go through 33 sessions and has already completed 24. "I don't know what I'm going to do tomorrow. I don't know what I'm going to do the day after tomorrow. I just see the days passing by and the worry increasing", he lamented. The elderly man's daughter said she contacted the hospital's ombudsman, but received no solution. "We call there every day and nothing, and always the same answer, that we have to wait for a part to arrive and then the technician can go and put it there," he said. Radiotherapy equipment at Unicamp's HC is damaged Reproduction/EPTV In a statement, the HC reported that the newest equipment has a broken part that needs to be imported from the United States. The manufacturer expects the part to arrive on Monday (27). As a result, some patients were reallocated to the second radiotherapy machine that is working. The exceptions are people who require specific technology from damaged equipment — in these cases, the medical team will compensate for the downtime. "Remember that this [damaged] equipment was recently inaugurated and is one of the most modern in the country. Medical teams evaluate all patients. There will be no loss in treatment, which will be compensated with different modulation when the equipment reopens," he added. Risks of interruption Image from Unicamp HC archive Reproduction/EPTV Oncologist Karina Ishikawa explained that conventional treatment involves five weekly sessions and needs to be continuous. According to the expert, breaks longer than two or three weeks can compromise the biological effect of the therapy. "A patient who has an indication for radiotherapy and whose treatment is delayed or not carried out compromises the oncological treatment, because it increases the risk of a local recurrence, of disease progression and this reduces the cure rate", he warned. VIDEOS: everything about Campinas and the region See more news about the region on g1 Campinas