A new treatment system to help people fight cancer went into service yesterday.

The Novalis Tx has the ability to destroy cancerous cells virtually anywhere in the body in a single, 20-minute session, without the need for a single cut of the scalpel, the manufacturers said.

The treatment has been installed at The Christie at Salford Royal Hospital, a new radiotherapy centre in the north west.

It treats cancer using a specialised technique called radiosurgery which is especially beneficial for tumours of the brain and spine previously thought untreatable by surgeons.

Using powerful, highly accurate beams of radiation shaped to fit the precise shape of even the most complex tumours, the system is able to treat painlessly without the need for invasive surgery, and with fewer side effects.

The short treatment times of the system benefit both doctor and patient and mean more patients can be treated on the system in one day.

Rachel Good, Christie radiotherapy manager for the new centre, said: “The Novalis Tx was the perfect choice for the centre because it will help The Christie treat more patients by switching between specialised radiosurgery for tumours in the brain to standard radiotherapy for other cancers of the body.

“In our first year we are looking to treat 720 patients with the Novalis Tx, 120 of which will be priority brain tumour patients where precise, non-invasive treatment is particularly effective.”

The news will be welcomed by the 300,000 people in the UK diagnosed with cancer each year.

Of these, 50,000 are estimated to develop either primary or secondary brain tumours, where traditional treatment is difficult to provide.