Proton therapy center opens at M.D. Anderson

The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, has started treating patients at its Proton Therapy Center, the first facility associated with a comprehensive cancer center and the fourth such facility in the United States. Proton therapy has proven most effective for cancers of the prostate, eye, lung, brain, head and neck, and cancers in children.

“The arrival of proton therapy marks a milestone for radiation treatment at M.D. Anderson, with the precision, safety, and effectiveness it beings to patients,” said James D. Cox, MD, head of the division of radiation oncology.

He said patients do not feel anything during proton therapy treatment, and because the therapy has minimal effect on healthy tissues, patients experience few, if any, side effects.

To date, more than 40,000 patients in 25 centers around the world have received proton therapy. When M.D. Anderson’s facility is operating at full capacity, it will accommodate 3,500 patients annually, making it the largest such center in the world.