Benefits of Proton Therapy in the Treatment of Cancer

Proton Therapy Treatment

Proton Therapy helps us in treating a wide range of cancer easily & this therapy is also very cost effective as compared to surgical treatment. These type of cancers can be treated using proton therapy:

1. Brain Tumor:

The treatment of brain tumors is a complicated process, as they are located near vital structures - hormonal, sensory and neurological centers - where damage can result in serious adverse effects such as neurocognitive, hormonal & auditory disorders.

This is why proton therapy, with revolutionary delivery modes like Pencil Beam Scanning, is the clear leader to treat CNS cancers. Proton therapy has globally proven to

• Reduce the dose of radiation by 60% to surrounding structures such as the hippocampus, cochlea, and pituitary.
• Reduce the incidence of second cancers by 50%.

2. Skull Base Tumors:

Proton therapy is an ideal modality for treating skull base and cervical spine tumors such as chordoma and chondrosarcoma. The dose can be focused on the target while achieving significant sparing of the brain, brain stem, cervical cord, and optic nerves and chiasm. Proton therapy is recommended for skull base tumors. The benefits of using IMPT are as follows:

• Dose escalation possible with proton therapy, between 70-74 GyRBE
• 7-year local control for chordoma and chondrosarcoma are 71% and 94% respectively.
• For cervical spine tumors, 10-year local control rates for chordomas and chondrosarcomas are 54% and 48% respectively.

3. Prostate Cancer:

Many treatments for prostate cancer often cause long-term side effects, including urinary complications and impotence. With these serious risks in mind, the precision and power of proton therapy are always recommended for prostate cancer. The benefits include:

• Reduced irradiation of the bladder by 60% thus reducing the risk of incontinence
• Reduce the incidence of second cancers by 50%.

4. Head, Neck & Eye Tumors:

The use of conventional radiotherapy in the case of these delicate tumors is once again associated with adverse effects such as functional disorders of the salivary glands, or in the case of eyes, a worsened quality of vision. Proton Therapy is ideal treatment mode because :

• Retains vision quality in 96 % of cases.
• Preserves swallowing functions and sense of taste.

5. Gastrointestinal Tumors:

Using conventional radiotherapy for gastrointestinal tumors there is a high risk of damaging the kidneys, liver, intestines, spinal cord and lungs. Compared with conventional radiotherapy, proton therapy offers the following benefits:

• Potentially reduces radiation exposure to surrounding organs by 60%.
• Reduces side effects significantly.

6. Thoracic Tumors:

In the case of Lung carcinoma, the precise nature of proton therapy allows a higher dose of radiation to be delivered directly to where it needs to be - the tumor. In addition, the treatment time is shortened, and healthy lung tissue is preserved. Proton therapy has emerged superior to conventional radiation in treating Lung Cancer for the following benefit:

• Lowers radiation exposure to surrounding structures by 50%.

To know more about the benefits of proton therapy visit Apolo Proton Cancer Center.