Ion beams for cancer treatment - a perspective

Conference · Sat Dec 31 04:00:00 EST 1994

OSTI ID:199749

Chu, W T ^[1]

---

1. Lawrence Berkeley Lab., CA (United States)

In radiation treatment of cancer, the degree of conforming the curative dose distribution with the target volume, while sparing the surrounding healthy tissues and critical organs, impacts the local control of disease. Good dose localization may be achieved by conventional radiation using multiple ports (3-dimensional conformal radiation therapy, 3D CRT). Clinically significant improvements in dose localization can be achieved using fewer ports of accelerated heavy charged-particle (protons and heavier-ion) beams, because they have definite ranges with sharp distal dose falloffs, (Bragg peak) and sharper penumbra. Approximately 130,000 U.S. patients per year will definitely benefit if treated with conformal approaches using either protons or 3D CRT, and if an annual load of 250 patients per machine is assumed, approximately 500 machines would be necessary to cover the total U.S. needs. When the cost of one dedicated hospital-based proton facility with multiple treatment rooms is compared with that of several conventional facilities needed to perform equal number of 3D CRT within a given time, and if spread out over the lifetime of the proton facility (25-30 years), the capital cost of a proton facility is smaller than, or at most comparable to, that of 3D CRT facilities of commensurate clinical efficacy. As the treatment delivery cost is dominated by the labor, whereas the capital cost of radiation treatment, conventional or otherwise, amounts to about 25% of the entire treatment cost, the proton treatments which use fewer ports are more cost-effective than 3D CRT. To achieve the full potential advantages of proton treatments, technologies to reduce the local failures, such as, better tumor definition, increased precision in patient positioning and dose delivery, and reduction in operating complexity through improved control systems, etc., should be carefully incorporated into future particle therapy facilities.

• DOE Contract Number: AC03-76SF00098
• OSTI ID: 199749
• Report Number(s): CONF-941129--
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

55 BIOLOGY AND MEDICINE
BASIC STUDIES
BRAGG CURVE
LIFE-CYCLE COST
NEOPLASMS
PROTON BEAMS
RADIOTHERAPY