Proton institute to treat cancer at IU

The Midwest Proton Radiotherapy Institute is about to bring state-of-the-art cancer treatment options to the Midwest. Located in the same building as the IU Cyclotron Facility, the MPRI will begin treating patients in January 2004.\nThe MPRI, a regional facility that will treat cancer patients with proton radiation, is only the third of its kind in the nation. \n"Proton radiotherapy is an established therapy that uses accelerated protons to treat cancer," said Nick Schreuder, director of medical physics.\nProtons are charged particles. When they penetrate the body in a proton beam, they slow down. Using this treatment, physicians can deliver a full dose of energy to the treatment site. For patients, this means fewer non-cancerous cells will be negatively affected, unlike other cancer treatments.\n"One of the great things we can deliver is high doses of treatment with fewer side effects," said Edward Dickey, director of clinic operations.\nProton therapy is not meant for all types of cancer. It is best for more sensitive areas and organs like the brain and spinal cord.\nThe clinic anticipates a lot of pediatric patients and provides special recovery rooms for children, as well as a play room.\nProton radiotherapy has been available on the East and West coasts for years, but this is the first time that treatment will be convenient for patients in the Midwest.\nThe IU Cyclotron Facility provided the proton beam that is used in the proton therapy. Dickey said using the IUCF for medical purposes was the idea of Dr. John Cameron, director of the IUCF.\nThe MPRI was established in 1996 under the medical direction of Dr. Allan Thornton. It is currently funded and run by Advanced Research and Technology, IU's licensing division, but when it opens in January, it will be financially independent.\nIt will open with one operational treatment room with a fixed horizontal proton beam. There will eventually be three treatment rooms at the clinic. Two other beams are being built currently and will be completed over the next two years. These machines, called proton gantries, allow the patient to lie inside, much like an MRI, while the beam rotates around them. \nThese highly accurate machines cost $4.6 million to purchase, and another $2.5 million to install, said Herschel Workman, who works in the finance department.\n"With the gantries we can treat patients to within one millimeter of accuracy," Dickey said.\nProviding this accuracy is not an easy process. Dickey said patients contact the clinic after being referred by their oncologist or seeking the treatment on their own. They then have an appointment for consult and begin their treatment planning. This can be a two-week process, because each person's case is different.\nPatients then receive an average of six- to eight-weeks of treatment, five days a week, depending on the type of cancer.\n"Having Saturday and Sunday off gives the body a chance to recuperate," Dickey said. \nHowever, he said there is no pain involved with the treatment. Most patients do not feel anything during the process.\nFamilies and patients at the MPRI will be housed at Jill's House, a free hospitality house for cancer patients and their families. The home is named after Jill Behrman, an IU student who disappeared in 2000.\n"Jill's House is important," said Dickey, "because no matter how many people we treat, if we don't have someplace to put them, there's no point."\n-- Contact staff writer Kelsey Flora at kflora@indiana.edu.