Scripps to install cyclotron for proton therapy
Scripps Proton Therapy Center in San Diego has started the installation of the region’s first cyclotron, which delivers proton therapy.
Manufactured by Varian Medical Systems of Palo Alto, Calif., the 90-ton cyclotron is six feet high and nine feet wide. The cyclotron’s job is to accelerate protons to roughly 100,000 miles per second to create a beam that can reach tumors, even if deeply seated and located near critical organs. These beams also can be shaped in three dimensions to avoid surrounding healthy tissues.
Made of iron, the cyclotron uses water and electricity to create a plasma stream, from which protons are extracted. Protons are then accelerated by the magnetic energy between the upper and lower halves of the cyclotron–the force of which is equivalent to 200 tons. The protons are then sent through a beam transport system using a series of electromagnets to steer the beams for delivery to patient treatment rooms.
Construction on the 102,000-square-foot center began in October 2010, and is expected to be open for patient care by spring 2013. The Scripps Proton Therapy Center will have the capacity to treat approximately 2,400 patients annually. It is being built on a seven-acre site in the Carroll Canyon area of Mira Mesa.
Scripps Proton Therapy Center will include five treatment rooms, three of which will include gantries, which are three-story, 360-degree rotational machines designed to deliver the therapeutic beam at the angle prescribed by the physician. Each gantry weighs 280 tons. The other two treatment rooms will have fixed-beam machines. The center will also offer MRI, CT and PET/CT imaging services in support of proton therapy; 16 patient exam rooms; and offices for 14 physicians.
The facility is being developed by Advanced Particle Therapy (APT) of San Diego and will be operated by Scripps Health and Scripps Clinic Medical Group. Scripps Health will provide clinical management services to the center and Scripps Clinic Medical Group will oversee the medical services. APT has arranged the financing to build the center and purchase the proton therapy equipment from Varian. Additionally, APT will manage and maintain the building and equipment.
There are currently nine proton therapy patient treatment centers operating in the U.S. They are located in Loma Linda, Calif., (opened 1991); Boston (opened 2002); Bloomington, Ind. (opened 2004); Houston (opened 2006); Jacksonville, Fla., (opened 2006); Oklahoma City (opened 2009); Philadelphia (opened 2010); Hampton, Va., (opened 2010); and Warrenville, Ill., (opened 2010).
Manufactured by Varian Medical Systems of Palo Alto, Calif., the 90-ton cyclotron is six feet high and nine feet wide. The cyclotron’s job is to accelerate protons to roughly 100,000 miles per second to create a beam that can reach tumors, even if deeply seated and located near critical organs. These beams also can be shaped in three dimensions to avoid surrounding healthy tissues.
Made of iron, the cyclotron uses water and electricity to create a plasma stream, from which protons are extracted. Protons are then accelerated by the magnetic energy between the upper and lower halves of the cyclotron–the force of which is equivalent to 200 tons. The protons are then sent through a beam transport system using a series of electromagnets to steer the beams for delivery to patient treatment rooms.
Construction on the 102,000-square-foot center began in October 2010, and is expected to be open for patient care by spring 2013. The Scripps Proton Therapy Center will have the capacity to treat approximately 2,400 patients annually. It is being built on a seven-acre site in the Carroll Canyon area of Mira Mesa.
Scripps Proton Therapy Center will include five treatment rooms, three of which will include gantries, which are three-story, 360-degree rotational machines designed to deliver the therapeutic beam at the angle prescribed by the physician. Each gantry weighs 280 tons. The other two treatment rooms will have fixed-beam machines. The center will also offer MRI, CT and PET/CT imaging services in support of proton therapy; 16 patient exam rooms; and offices for 14 physicians.
The facility is being developed by Advanced Particle Therapy (APT) of San Diego and will be operated by Scripps Health and Scripps Clinic Medical Group. Scripps Health will provide clinical management services to the center and Scripps Clinic Medical Group will oversee the medical services. APT has arranged the financing to build the center and purchase the proton therapy equipment from Varian. Additionally, APT will manage and maintain the building and equipment.
There are currently nine proton therapy patient treatment centers operating in the U.S. They are located in Loma Linda, Calif., (opened 1991); Boston (opened 2002); Bloomington, Ind. (opened 2004); Houston (opened 2006); Jacksonville, Fla., (opened 2006); Oklahoma City (opened 2009); Philadelphia (opened 2010); Hampton, Va., (opened 2010); and Warrenville, Ill., (opened 2010).