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Dr. Duncan Stearns admires the artwork of a patient in the waiting room of the UH Proton Therapy Center — less than 500 feet from a nationally-ranked children's hospital, UH Rainbow Babies' & Children's Hospital. PROTON VS. PHOTON THERAPY Traditional radiation therapy uses high- energy photons. While e…ective for a broad range of cancers, photons pass through the patient to the tumor and then exit, resulting in radiation being deposited in healthy tissue. This radiation scatter can result in short- and long-term complica- tions, including secondary malignancies. "A proton beam di…ers from an X-ray beam as it is a charged particle, so it inter- acts differently with matter," explains Dav id Ma nsur, MD, Div ision Chief, Radiation Oncology, UH Rainbow Babies & Children's Hospital. "Unlike an X-ray beam that essentially goes right through the patient, a proton beam penetrates to a depth that is proportional to its energy and then it stops, eliminating the unnecessary exit dose and resulting in less radiation to healthy, uninvolved tissue." With UH's proton therapy system, the maximum dose of radiation is safely delivered to the targeted tumor site. This is accomplished with beam-modulating technology which shapes and regulates the proton therapy beams, conforming them to the treatment plan. In addition, a robotic couch allows optimal position- ing of the patient, which is confirmed through an image guidance system prior to each treatment session. The result is a significant decrease in radiation to healthy tissue and organs. And that, according to Dr. Mansur, is especially of benefit for children, teens and young adults whose developing organs are more vulnerable to damage from radiation. "Many pediatric and young adult patients have cancers that have a very high cure rate," he says. "The rea l hope is that proton therapy can potentially limit the long-term e…ects of unnecessary radiation to uninvolved healthy tissue ... long-term e…ects such as neurocognitive deficits and secondary malignancies that can manifest over decades and are a big concern with younger patients." Just like photon-based therapy, pro- ton therapy + is noninvasive and painless + enables many patients to enjoy normal daily activities throughout treatment + can be used with chemotherapy or surgery, as needed + allows the use of sedation during treat- ment sessions, if needed. "Proton therapy is both an evolution and a revolution. It is the next generation in how we achieve these goals of getting the best, most e…ective radiation to the tumor or target, and at the same time protect the person's normal body structure and normal functioning," says Mitchell Machtay, MD, Chairman, Department of Radiation Oncology, UH Case Medical Center. BENEFITS FOR CHILDREN AND ADULTS One of the challenges in the use of proton therapy is prioritizing the patients who will benefit the most. "Naturally, our youngest patients, those with brain tumors, spinal tumors, and other solid tumors who have 0 7 M D N E W S . C O M /// M D N E W S C L E V E L A N D /A K R O N / C A N T O N n S E P T E M B E R / O C T O B E R 2 016