Proton Beam Therapy For Lung Cancer

Physicians at the md anderson proton therapy center are world leaders in the research and treatment of lung cancer and pioneers in developing proton therapy for the benefit of lung cancer patients.

Proton beam therapy for lung cancer.

Proton therapy targets the lung tumor more precisely than other forms of radiotherapy reducing excess radiation to the uninvolved lung heart and other mediastinal structures. That finding comes from a study that used existing patient data to compare the two types of radiation. Because doctors can better control where proton therapy releases its highest concentration of energy proton therapy is believed to affect less healthy tissue and have fewer side effects than traditional radiation therapy. Results showed that proton treatment was safe and effective for treating early non small cell cancers in either the central parts of the lung or on.

Proton beam therapy can be used to give high doses of radiation to the cancer with less damage to nearby normal cells. Compared with older passive scattering proton therapy treatment our pencil beam scanning technology precisely delivers proton beam radiation treatment for lung cancer within 2 millimeters and with the utmost care. It uses high energy or low energy proton beams to treat cancer. Proton beam therapy for cancer is similar to radiation therapy but uses high energy protons instead of photons or x rays to damage tumors.

A type of radiation treatment called proton beam radiation therapy may be safer and just as effective as traditional radiation therapy for adults with advanced cancer. We can attack tumors layer by layer and minimize harmful exposure to surrounding healthy tissue and organs. Lung cancer remains the number one cancer killer among men and women in north america. It is a treatment for some types of cancer.

The beam stops when it reaches the cancer which means it does not damage any normal cells behind the cancer this is different to a standard radiotherapy beam which continues through the cancer. Proton therapy for lung cancer treatment. Most people don t need to have proton beam therapy and have external radiotherapy using high energy x rays photons. It is usually used for early stage tumors stage i ii and iii and has been used for many different types of cancer such as lung cancer prostate cancer childhood cancers and more.

Traditional radiation delivers x rays or beams of photons to the tumor and beyond it. 6 in a study by the university of texas md anderson cancer center of patients with inoperable nsclc proton therapy reduced dose to normal lungs esophagus spinal cord. Lung cancer usually begins in the cells lining the bronchi and often grows for a long time without producing symptoms. The five year survival rate is just 15 percent among those diagnosed with the disease.

Slater md proton treatment and research center began using proton therapy for lung cancer in the mid 1990s teams led by dr. The challenges of lung cancer treatment. Proton therapy can cause side effects as the cancer cells die or when the energy from the proton beam damages healthy tissue. Where is it available.