Development of UK Facilities for Proton Radiotherapy

The British Institute of Radiology (BIR), has welcomed the announcement from the Department of Health (DH) to move ahead with NHS provision of proton radiotherapy from centres in London and Manchester. This is a long-awaited development which will bring much benefit to selected patients. Children with cancer will especially benefit, along with adults with spinal tumours, head and neck cancers, some difficult to access abdominal tumours and certain types of brain and eye tumours. It is to the great credit of the DH team that this development is going ahead at such a financially challenging time.

The BIR was instrumental in raising the profile of proton radiotherapy at its 2009 President’s Conference. The then President, Professor Stuart Green says,

“In 2009 we gathered a large audience to spend two days discussing the science, technology and clinical benefits of particle radiotherapy. It is tremendous that the Department of Health is now taking this important step towards providing proton radiotherapy treatment from facilities in England.”

Proton radiotherapy and radiotherapy with heavier particles such as carbon ions are topics of much research around the world, and a subject of a 2011 special issue of the British Journal of Radiology.