Helical tomotherapy for cancer treatment: a rapid health technology assessment.

Objectives: Helical tomotherapy (HT) can be applied to treat complex malignant cancer with high-precise radiotherapy, and it can reduce the damage to normal tissues and improve treatment effects. But the procurement of HT must be approved by relevant departments of administration affairs. This study, appointed by the National Health and Family Planning Commission of China and undertook by the National Health Development Research Center and the Chinese Evidence-Based Medicine Centre, was aimed to rapidly assess the effectiveness, safety, costs, and applicability of HT, so as to provide currently available best evidence for decision-makers of health policies.