Proton therapy

Every year more than one million new cancer cases are diagnosed in the world. Thanks to the use of modern diagnostic equipment, the level of oncology detection at early stages is increasing constantly. This allows achieving greater efficiency of the cancer treatment. Nevertheless, it is not always possible to detect a tumor at the early stages. That is why scientists are inventing more and more therapeutic options to treat advanced cancer.

One of the most innovative solutions is proton therapy. Due to its effectiveness, it is used in the leading specialized world’s clinics. Over years of use, the method has shown excellent results in the treatment of brain tumors, head and neck cancer, eye melanoma, breast cancer, and other tumors.

What is proton therapy?

Proton beam therapy is one of the most innovative and sparing radiation therapy methods. It is used for the targeted treatment of malignant tumors with maximum precision. Proton therapy delivers a beam of energy directly into the cells of the tumor with little or no negative impact on the surrounding tissues.

With the help of special equipment, the protons are delivered to the required depth, directly into the tumor. As a result, the process of cell death begins in the tumor, layer by layer. This method made it possible to treat the most advanced tumors with maximum safety for healthy tissues.

As a rule, the proton therapy course takes from few days to few weeks. The less advanced the tumor is, the fewer procedures are needed for a complete recovery. According to the statistics, patients most often need several procedures to destroy tumor cells completely.

Indications

The innovative method of treatment for cancer allows to successfully fight most cancers, including tumors located in places inaccessible to classical methods. The method demonstrates efficacy in the treatment of:

  • Brain tumors.
  • Lung cancer.
  • Eye neoplasms, including melanoma.
  • Prostate cancer.
  • Breast cancer.

Moreover, proton therapy takes a leading place in the treatment of oncology in children. Due to its safety for the patient, the method can be successfully applied in children and elderly people. That is why most of the world’s proton therapy centers pay special attention to treating these groups of patients.

Benefits

Proton therapy has a huge number of advantages compared to conventional radiation therapy with photons. The reasons why the method has become very popular among patients are:

  • Due to the adjustable dose of radiation and high accuracy, the harm to the healthy tissues and nearby to the tumor organs is almost zero.
  • Proton therapy can significantly reduce the risk of secondary tumors development.
  • In addition, at the advanced stages of oncology, this method can extend the life of the patient for several years.
  • Proton therapy can be used if the patient has contraindications to the other cancer treatment methods. 
  • There is no need to stay in the hospital after treatment completion. The day after the procedure, most patients can go home and return to usual activities of daily living.

Side effects

During the procedure, the doctor determines the required dose of radiation, so proton therapy has virtually no side effects and no risk to the patient’s health.

The side effects depend on the dose of radiation received during treatment and the stage of the tumor. Patients usually tolerate this type of treatment well, but in some cases, they may experience the following:

  • Fatigue.
  • Digestive problems.
  • Headaches.
  • Redness of skin at the treatment site.
  • Hair loss at the treatment site.

Treatment abroad

For treating cancer abroad, you can use the services of the best medical tourism operator Booking Health. With its help, you can undergo innovative and specialized treatment in the leading hospitals of the world. 

With Booking Health you will get a huge number of benefits during your treatment abroad. The company’s specialists will choose the best clinic for you, organize a transfer from the airport, as well as provide a personal interpreter. Your personal medical coordinator will stay in touch with you 24/7.

You can find more information about treatment abroad on the website of medical tourism operator Booking Health.