Proton

• Proton beam therapy is a more precise treatment that can better focus radiation on a cancer, reducing the side-effects of treatment.
• This leads to better cognitive function and fewer long-term side-effects among patients who receive proton therapy compared to X-ray (photon) treatment.
• Although proton therapy is more expensive to deliver than photon radiation, studies have shown long-term cost-effectiveness of proton beam therapy for medulloblastoma.
• In a study of more than 1,000 adults with other types of locally advanced cancer, proton therapy led to fewer unplanned hospitalizations.

Canadian patients need to travel for treatment

• Researchers in the U.K. estimate that up to 15 per cent of all patients with curable cancers may benefit from proton therapy.
• However, without a domestic facility, Canadians who need proton beam therapy must travel out-of-country to receive this medically necessary treatment for their cancer.

Patients who are able to travel out-of-country report high levels of stress and feelings of isolation. Many of these concerns would be reduced with a domestic, Canadian proton therapy facility.

Progress toward Canadian facilities

In 2016, Québec announced a partnership with a private health-care company to build a standalone proton therapy facility in Montréal.

• It is recognized that the per-patient cost to deliver proton therapy would be less if a Canadian facility were available.
• Canadian doctors and patients eagerly await the day when a cancer patient can receive this advanced treatment without travelling out of country.
• Having access to proton therapy would also allow Canadian researchers to collaborate globally in scientific studies.

Derek Tsang receives research grant funding from ACCESS (https://accessforkidscancer.ca), the Brain Tumour Foundation of Canada, and the US National Cancer Institute. Tsang also received travel funding from Mevion Medical Systems in 2022.

• Doping involves the addition of dopants to the semiconductor via a redox reaction to increase the density of charge carriers.
• "The Fermi level of the semiconductors was precisely and reproducibly tuned by the pH of the doping solution," says Dr. Yamashita.
• Moreover, such precise doping was conducted in ambient air for the first time, demonstrating unprecedented scalability suitable for device manufacturing.
• This innovative doping method offers a cost-effective approach for developing flexible and stable electronics, such as wireless sensors, energy-harvesting modules, biomolecular devices, displays, and solar cells.

• STOCKHOLM, Jan. 31, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- RaySearch Laboratories AB (pub) is proud to announce that the number of radiotherapy centers that have chosen RayStation®* for treatment planning now exceeds 1,000.
• The first version of RayStation was launched in 2009 and the system is now available in cancer centers in 43 countries worldwide.
• The United States has the largest number of RayStation centers with more than 285 customers, followed by Japan, with around 220 centers, and China, where around 90 centers have bought RayStation.
• The first ever customer for RayStation was Westdeutsches Protonentherapiezentrum Essen (WPE) in Germany, who bought RayStation in 2009.

• TAMPA, Fla., Jan. 25, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Going under the knife is taking on a new and more promising meaning at Tampa General Hospital (TGH) Cancer Institute , where doctors are using a sophisticated AI-driven tool to treat cancer.
• It is capable of treating cancerous and benign tumors throughout the body, as well as neurologic disorders, in as little as 15 minutes.
• The tool, through its speed and advanced precision, is expected to expand the capabilities of Tampa General Cancer Institute's newly established Center for Precision Radiosurgery, said Dr. Richard Tuli, professor and chair of the Department of Radiation Oncology at USF Health Morsani College of Medicine, deputy director of the TGH Cancer Institute, and director of Radiation Oncology at Tampa General.
• Tuli joined TGH from Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York, N.Y.
  "It's another example of providing our patients with the best possible care across the Tampa Bay region and the state,'' he said.