Proton beam unit ‘for 700 patients’
Editor – Health News
The first cancer patients to get proton beam therapy at a UK centre will be treated in Newport by Christmas 2016. Experts say it should “transform” treatment for 700 patients a year, including children with hard to reach tumours. A former clinic will be converted and also offer traditional radiotherapy and chemotherapy.
Proton Partners International (PPI) set out its plans, saying it will cost the NHS less than sending patients abroad. Protons can be directed at tumours more precisely than X-rays and they stop once they hit the target rather than carrying on through the body. It makes operating on children’s tumours – and cancers close to sensitive areas like the spinal cord – more exact.
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