Indiana University Health Proton Therapy Center
| Indiana University Health Proton Therapy Center | |
|---|---|
  Shown in Bloomington, Indiana | |
| Geography | |
| Location | Bloomington, Indiana, United States |
| Coordinates | 39°11′24″N 86°31′20″W / 39.19000°N 86.52222°WCoordinates: 39°11′24″N 86°31′20″W / 39.19000°N 86.52222°W |
| Organization | |
| Care system | Public |
| Hospital type | Specialist |
| Affiliated university | Indiana University |
| Specialty | Oncology |
| History | |
| Founded | 2004 |
| Closed | 2014 |
| Links | |
| Website | http://iuhealthproton.org |
| Lists | Hospitals in Indiana |
The Indiana University (IU) Health Proton Therapy Center formally known as the Midwest Proton Radiotherapy Institute (MPRI) [1] is the first proton facility in the Midwest. The Center offers proton therapy in Bloomington, Indiana, United States located on the Indiana University campus. The IU Health Proton Therapy Center is the only proton therapy center in the U.S. to use a uniform-scanning beam for dose delivery [2] which decreases undesirable neutron dose to patients.[3]
Affiliations
The center is affiliated with the Melvin and Bren Simon Cancer Center of Indiana University and is the only U.S. proton therapy center associated with a university-based proton therapy technology research group, IU Cyclotron Operations. The center's pediatric program is affiliated with Riley Hospital for Children, ranked among the top 30 children’s hospitals in the nation in U.S. & World Report’s 2010-11 edition of America’s Best Children’s Hospitals.[4]
History
Proton therapy is not experimental and has been used in the United States since 1946.[5] Today there are only nine centers in the U.S that provide proton therapy. The scarcity of proton centers is due to how expensive the machine that produces a proton beam costs.[6] This machine is called a cyclotron. IU Health Proton Therapy Center was fortunate enough to repurpose the cyclotron located on the Indiana University Cyclotron Facility (IUCF) from a research facility into a proton therapy center.
The proton therapy center and the cyclotron closed operations on December 5, 2014.[7] The decision was made due to a lack of revenue and debt incurred by the center, as well as advances in proton therapy around the country that now make the equipment and methods at the proton therapy center out of date.[8]
Proton Therapy
Radiologists have been using proton therapy to treat cancer since the 1950s. Long recognized for their targeting capability, proton beams achieve greater precision than traditional X-rays, while exposing healthy tissue to less radiation. This allows physicians to deliver high doses of radiation even when tumors are close to sensitive organs and tissue. A proton therapy beam’s powerful energy is focused directly on a patient’s tumor. Once released, the energy stops – there is no exit dose and no additional radiation unlike X-ray beams and gamma knife rays.[9]