Compact Proton Therapy From ProTom International Tested In Flint
FLOWER MOUND, Texas -- The testing of a compact cancer-treatment technology from ProTom International Inc. demonstrated last week that the system achieves its design specification: delivering high-energy protons to isocenter at a beam intensity sufficient for standard clinical practice.
The ProTom technical team measured stable and reproducible performance on the Radiance 330 Proton Therapy System at the McLaren Proton Therapy Center in Flint.
This is the first time that ProTom has tested its compact system's gantry beam optics design.
Vahagn Nazaryan, senior vice president of physics for ProTom, noted that "the system performed as designed and quickly achieved a dose rate sufficient for standard clinical practice."
Earlier in the summer, ProTom installed a new custom-designed radiofrequency quadrupole proton linac injector from AccSys Technology Inc. This upgrade has significantly improved accelerated proton beam intensities. The RFQ upgrade resulted in an increase in injection intensity yielding in excess of several times the number of protons per cycle accelerated in the synchrotron, with further tuning and optimization ongoing at McLaren.
"Both the ProTom and McLaren teams are to be commended for achieving this very significant result, which continues to validate that the system is performing as it was designed," said ProTom CEO Stephen L. Spotts. "ProTom is focused on final validation and testing in order to secure all regulatory clearances necessary for clinical operation." ProTom International, Inc. is a medical device company committed to a new generation of financially viable proton radiotherapy centers that are easier to implement and equipped with advanced, compact technology. The Radiance 330 Proton therapy system makes community-based proton therapy truly accessible by reducing cost and technology barriers inherent with previous generations of equipment. To find out more about the future of proton therapy, visit us at www.protominternational.com.
McLaren Health Care includes more than 150 locations, 15,000 employees and over 10,000 network physicians. It includes nine wholly-owned regional hospitals: McLaren Regional Medical Center in Flint; Lapeer Regional Medical Center; Ingham Regional Medical Center and Ingham Regional Orthopedic Hospital in Lansing; Bay Regional Medical Center and Bay Special Care Hospital in Bay City; Mount Clemens Regional Medical Center in Mount Clemens; Central Michigan Community Hospital in Mt. Pleasant and POH Regional Medical Center in Pontiac. McLaren Homecare Group, an award-winning home health provider, and McLaren Health Plan, a top-rated commercial and Medicaid HMO are also a part of the system. More at www.mclaren.org.
