It is heartening to read a report of good functional outcomes following proton beam therapy in young patients with medulloblastoma, including the absence of many unpleasant side eff ects that can occur after conventional photon therapy. The authors quote UK research, which criticises the current proton therapy treatment policy of dividing the x-ray (photon) equivalent dose by 1·1. This is done ...

9.1 Background to Proton Therapy The use of proton beams for radiation treatment was proposed by Robert R. Wilson in 1946 [286]. Wilson referred to the ballistical aspects of the proton beam dose distribution as a rationale for the new modality. Heavy charged particles such as protons produce an energy deposition profile in tissue which is superior to profiles attainable using photon or electro...

The goal of this study was to exam the efficacy of current DVH based clinical guidelines draw from photon experience for lung cancer radiation therapy on proton therapy. Comparison proton plans and IMRT plans were generated for 10 lung patients treated in our proton facility. A gEUD based plan evaluation method was developed for plan evaluation. This evaluation method used normal lung gEUD(a) c...

Proton radiotherapy has seen an increasing role in the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Historically, external beam radiotherapy has played a very limited role in HCC due to a high incidence of toxicity to surrounding normal structures. The ability to deliver a high dose of radiation to the tumor is a key factor in improving outcomes in HCC. Advances in photon radiotherapy have impr...

Radiation oncology has changed greatly in recent decades, driven mainly by technical advances in treatment planning and delivery. Proton radiation therapy is a further advance; however, it is more expensive than traditional photon therapy and its critics argue that its costs are not justifi ed. Proton therapy is distinct from traditional photon or x-ray-based therapy since the physical properti...

Proton therapy is a rapidly progressing field for cancer treatment. Globally, many proton therapy facilities are being commissioned or under construction. Secondary neutrons are an important issue during the commissioning process of a proton therapy facility. The purpose of this study is to model and validate scanning nozzles of proton therapy at Samsung Medical Center (SMC) by Monte Carlo simu...

Proton beam therapy has recently become available to a broader population base. There remains much controversy about its routine use in prostate cancer. We provide an analysis of the existing literature regarding efficacy and toxicity of the technique. Currently, the use of proton beam therapy for prostate cancer is largely dependent on continued reimbursement for the practice. While there are ...

The purpose of this study was to devise a simple semi-empirical model to estimate the range shift in clinical practices with high-Z inhomogeneity in proton beam. A semi-empirical model utilizing the logarithmic dependence on Z in stopping power from Bohr's classical approach has been developed to calculate the range shift due to the presence of inhomogeneity. Range shift from metallic plates of...

BACKGROUND Concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CRT) is the standard of care in patients with limited-stage small cell lung cancer (SCLC). Treatment with conventional x-ray therapy (XRT) is associated with high toxicity rates, particularly acute grade 3+ esophagitis and pneumonitis. We present outcomes for the first known series of limited-stage SCLC patients treated with proton therapy and a dosimetr...

the ionization effects of charged particles produced in neutron interactions for boron neutroncapture therapy are considered here using srim monte carlo code. the estimated values of these effects ina plexiglas acrylic phantom are shown to agree well with the available experimental values in high boronconcentration areas. as expected, the ionization effects from lithium and alpha particles are ...