Building Awareness of Proton Therapy

According to the CDC in 2007, there were 223,307 men in the United States were diagnosed with prostate

cancer. Of those diagnosed, 29,093 of them died from the disease. That is a little over 13% mortality rate.

Thankfully, the US has seen a drop of nearly five percent mortality rate from mid-1990s to 2004 from this

disease. Traditional treatment and new alternative cancer treatments likely caused this decrease.

When a man gets a diagnosis of prostate cancer from his doctor, what treatment options does he have? One

of the most recent alternative cancer treatments has been proton therapy (which was introduced around since

the 1950s). Proton therapy uses a pin-point radiation beam with two thousand pounds of power and it travels

almost at the speed of light. It can be molded and aimed precisely at a tumor in the prostate gland without

evasive surgery and with very minimal damage to surrounding tissues. It effectively uses the radiation to

destroy the tumor. Since this alternative cancer treatment is mostly used to treat localized cancers, it often

can help when traditional treatments are ineffective or are too dangerous to surrounding organs.

Traditional therapies (such as x-ray radiation) have to be used in small doses, since it has a broad spectrum

and can affect healthy tissue. With proton therapy, the radiation is compacted to a pin-point beam that can

apply higher doses right at its target: the tumor. When the radiation maximizes at its entry point of the tumor

(known as the Bragg's Peak), the proton beam does not go beyond the tumor; thus, leaving healthy tissue

virtually untouched. The beam can actually be molded to the exact shape of the tumor to lessen damage to

surrounding tissue even more.

One of the deciding factors if this alternative cancer treatment is right for a man with prostate cancer is if the

cancer is localized within the prostate (i.e. no metastases). Another consideration is patient girth. Usually, a

morbidly obese patient would not be a good candidate for proton therapy because of the depth limitations of

the radiation beam. Only a qualified oncologist could tell a patient for sure about his option for proton

therapy.

To date, side effects of proton therapy as an alternative cancer treatment are noticeably less than traditional

radiation, since the tumor is being precisely targeted resulting in fewer side effects. One's oncologist will be

able to make a referral to a treatment center or hospital which specializes in proton therapy, but a referral

isn't always needed.

It is worth noting that this alternative cancer treatment is significantly more expensive than photon

(traditional) radiation treatment. However, a common myth is that this treatment is not covered by

insurance. That is not the case. Most insurance carriers do offer coverage for proton therapy, including

Medicare.

The major advantages of proton therapy are reduced side effects and minimal chance of damage to

surrounding organs or tissues. These advantages make this an option worth discussing with a primary

physician or oncologist.

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