Proton Therapy Fact Sheet

  • Proton therapy, a form of radiation treatment without many of the short- and long-term side effects often experienced with standard radiation therapy, is an advanced cancer treatment for specific types of tumors.
  • Studies have shown proton therapy to be effective in treating brain, head and neck, central nervous system, lung, pediatric, and prostate tumors as well as cancers that can not be removed completely by surgery. Research is showing promising results in the treatment of other tumors.1 
  • As with standard radiation therapy (which uses photons or X-rays), proton therapy kills cancer cells by preventing them from dividing and growing. The difference between the two therapies is that protons deposit much of their energy (radiation) directly in the tumor, allowing patients to receive higher, more effective doses, and reducing damage to healthy tissue near the tumor.2 X-rays release substantial doses of their energy (radiation) quickly after penetrating the skin, damaging healthy tissue and organs on their way to the tumor and, again, as they leave the body.3
  • Research shows proton therapy can cause fewer short- and long-term side effects than standard radiation therapy, reduce the  occurrence of secondary tumors and improve patients' quality of life.1,4,5
  • Because it is so targeted, proton therapy can be particularly effective in treating children, who are more sensitive than adults to the effects of radiation. Precise targeting also can make proton therapy ideal for treating tumors near vital organs.5
  • Proton therapy is safe, non-invasive and painless for most patients. It does not require an overnight stay in the hospital. Treatments are usually given five-days-a-week, for a period of four to eight weeks. The total number of treatments needed depends on the location and size of the tumor. The actual treatment time is about one minute but total daily treatment sessions typically range from 15 to 30 minutes due to the time spent positioning the patient for this precise treatment.
  • Proton therapy patients avoid many of the side effects inherent in all therapies that use photon radiation, including IMRT or other radiosurgeries.4,6
  • Unlike photon radiation, proton therapy can be used at the same time as chemotherapy because it does not affect bone marrow.6
  • Even when standard radiation is the best alternative for a patient, there is a point at which no further therapy can be tolerated and treatment must be stopped. Proton therapy is an option for some of those patients.4,6
  • Although 250,000 cancer patients nationwide may benefit from proton therapy, the centers currently operating in the U.S. only offer about 6,000 treatment slots per year.
  • Proton therapy is not experimental. More than 60,000 people worldwide have received proton therapy at centers in Europe, Asia and the United States. It was first used to treat patients in 1955 in a research setting, but its use was limited because imaging techniques could not accurately pinpoint tumors. Following advances made in imaging technology such as CT imaging, MRI, and PET scans, the first hospital-based treatment center opened in California in 1990. More than 30,000 Americans have received proton therapy.
  • Many U.S. insurance providers cover proton therapy as does the U.S Medicare program and many state Medicaid programs.
  • Currently, there are seven proton therapy treatment centers in the U.S. that treat a range of tumors:
    • Loma Linda University Proton Therapy Center, Loma Linda, Calif.
    • Francis H. Burr Proton Therapy Center at Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston
    • Midwest Proton Radiation Institute (MPRI), Bloomington, Ind.
    • University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center's Proton Therapy Center, Houston
    • University of Florida Proton Therapy Institute (UFPTI), Jacksonville
    • The ProCure Proton Therapy Center, Oklahoma City, opened July 8, 2009
    • The University of Pennsylvania Roberts Proton Therapy Center, opened January 2010
    • In addition, a specialized proton center that treats only ocular (eye) cancers is operating at the University of California, Davis, Sacramento
  • Several more treatment centers are currently under construction in the United States including:
    • the Hampton University Proton Therapy Institute (2010),
    • ProCure's center in suburban Chicago (early 2011),
    • a number of other hospitals and academic institutions have announced plans for proton therapy centers.

Web site:  www.procure.com

Media Contact:
Andrea Johnson, PCI
312/558-1770
ajohnson@pcipr.com

Footnotes: 


  1. S. Ternier, Ph.D. Proton Therapy White Paper. On file.

  2. Fowler J. What Can We Expect from Dose Escalation Using Proton Beams. Clinical Oncology 2003,15:S10-S15

  3. Metz J. Reduced Normal Tissue Toxicity with Proton Therapy. OncoLink 4.24.2002.

  4. MacDonald S., DeLaney T. and Loeffler J. Proton Beam Radiation Therapy. Radiation Oncology 2006, 24:199-208.

  5. Miralbell et al. Potential reduction of the incidence of radiation-induced second cancers by using proton beam in the treatment of pediatric tumors. Int J. Radiat. Oncol. Biol. Phys. 2002;54(3) 824-829.

  6. Greco et al. Current Status of Radiotherapy with Proton and Light Ion Beams. Cancer  January 2007