(NewsUSA) - When people think about cancer treatments, most only consider surgery, standard radiation or chemotherapy as options and usually know about the serious side effects associated. However, what most fail to recognize is a treatment known as proton beam therapy.
Loma Linda University Medical Center, in southern California, opened the world's first hospital-based proton treatment center for cancer patients in 1990. Now, some 18 years later, LLUMC has given a hero's treatment to the physician who pioneered the technology that has helped thousands of patients in their battles against cancer.
LLUMC has named its renowned proton center in honor of Dr. James M. Slater, the father of clinical proton therapy development at the medical center and one of the earliest innovators who pointed cancer treatment in a new direction worldwide.
"I became very interested in proton beam therapy in the 1960s, when I saw the devastating side effects that untargeted radiotherapy has on cancer patients undergoing radiation treatment," Slater said. "I realized that this problem could be minimized if normal-tissue exposure to radiation was reduced."
Today, proton therapy is considered one of the most successful and least invasive treatments for many types of cancer. Proton therapy treatment utilizes targeted proton beams, rather than generalized radiation that produces more morbidity. Additionally, the ability of this therapy to prevent normal tissues and healthy organs from being exposed to radiation can improve the quality of life for cancer patients both during and after treatment.
It's no wonder that thousands of patients are seen annually at LLUMC's James M. Slater, M.D. Proton Treatment and Research Center. In fact, LLUMC has treated more than 14,000 patients in their battles against deep-tissue cancers and other diseases and currently provides proton therapy to more patients worldwide than any other center of its kind -; about 150 patients every day.
For more information on proton therapy and LLUMC, 1-800-PROTONS (776-8667).
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