Friday, June 22, 2018
Beaumont’s Proton Therapy Center celebrates 1st anniversary
One year ago, Bill Baker of Mid-Michigan sought out proton therapy for his brain tumor. He liked what he heard about protons treating tumors and cancers without damaging nearby healthy cells.
Baker, 87, of Elsie, was the first patient treated at Beaumont’s Proton Therapy Center, in Royal Oak, June 28, 2017. One year later, he is happy with the results.
“After a recent MRI, I got a good report from Dr. Prakash Chinnaiyan,” said Baker. “He explained the images showed part of my brain tumor was completely gone, and the main part of the tumor is dying. I’m thrilled.”
Baker and other patients who received treatment at Beaumont’s Proton Therapy Center, along with their families, are invited to attend a special celebration at the center in July.
Proton therapy is a high-tech alternative to X-ray radiation. A scanning beam of proton radiation with image guidance offers greater precision to destroy cancerous cells, sparing healthy adjacent healthy tissue with fewer side effects.
“Proton therapy can also sometimes allow us to retreat and possibly cure cancer that does not respond to other treatment methods,” explained Craig Stevens, M.D., Ph.D., chairman, Radiation Oncology, Beaumont Health.
As Beaumont approaches the first anniversary of the Proton Therapy Center, below are a few facts:
- 101 patients have undergone treatment in the first 12 months of operation
- The medical team has treated patients from near and far: Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Missouri, California and Hawaii
- Many types of cancer have been treated in children and adults including: brain tumors; head and neck; lung; prostate; breast; sarcoma/chordoma; thymoma; esophagus; liver; Hodgkin’s disease/lymphoma; and testicular.
- Beaumont has the first and only operational proton center to treat cancer patients in Michigan.
- Beaumont’s center is one of just 28 proton therapy centers in the nation.
Construction
Construction began on the $40 million Proton Therapy Center at Beaumont Hospital, Royal Oak in February 2015. The two-story building is 25,200-square-feet, including a basement.
The first floor houses the Proton Therapy Center, including a cyclotron and gantry that produces and delivers proton beams to a single-room treatment area. The second floor is home to Beaumont Children’s Center for Children with Cancer and Blood Disorders.
Technology
Proton therapy uses positively charged atomic particles, traveling up to two-thirds the speed of light, to fight cancer. A cyclotron, or particle accelerator, creates protons from hydrogen molecules. The proton beam is sent to the treatment room through a transport system consisting of magnets, called the beam line, finally arriving in the gantry, a device that rotates around the patient. The beam is directed to the patient through a nozzle that can paint dose into the tumor with great precision.
Beaumont chose IBA of Belgium to manufacture, install and maintain the proton system.
“Our IBA ProteusOne single-room treatment system includes precision technologies,” said Peyman Kabolizadeh, M.D., Ph.D., clinical director, Beaumont Proton Therapy Center. “Pencil Beam Scanning technology with Intensity Modulated Proton Therapy and 3D Cone Beam CT, can target a tumor within less than a millimeter.”
Pencil Beam Scanning refers to the delivery of protons in a thin beam. Like a pencil, the beam uses back and forth motions to target the treatment area – the shape, size and depth. It “paints” a radiation dose on tumors layer by layer. Compared to X-ray beams, which pass through a patient, proton beams deliver targeted radiation to the tumor and then stop - resulting in no exit dose.
Research
“Our center offers some of the most advanced proton technology available in the world and we’re working to enhance its capabilities,” said Dr. Stevens. “Along with the technology, we have assembled a team of experts. Our team is developing a new mode of proton treatment that will be important for many cancers and shared this information at a conference in Spain. Beaumont researchers are identifying ways to advance current proton therapy and improve patient outcomes.”
Said Dr. Kabolizadeh, “A continuous proton arc treatment can significantly reduce the adverse effects of the tumor motion produced by breathing on lung cancer treatments. The promising results might lead to interest and future development of the proton arc therapy technique. Beaumont continues to be a center of new treatment development through research.”
About Beaumont Radiation Oncology
Beaumont Health’s Radiation Oncology department is recognized nationally and internationally for advanced technology, innovative treatment and research. Advanced radiation treatments pioneered or available at Beaumont include proton therapy, adaptive radiation therapy, image-guided radiation therapy, high-dose rate brachytherapy and intraoperative radiation therapy – all designed to destroy cancer with precision and fewer side effects.
Beaumont’s Proton Therapy Center is the first in Michigan, treating cancer patients with a powerful and precise form of treatment that deposits energy directly in the tumor, sparing nearby healthy organs and tissue from harm. Beaumont radiation oncologists are leading clinical research trials to advance treatment for brain tumors, lung cancer, prostate cancer, breast cancer, colorectal cancer and more.