A little wonder, every day

Proton therapy: cumulative totals are not annual counts

Обладнання центру протонної терапії в Орсе; документальне фото, не зображення результату лікування / Equipment at the Orsay proton therapy centre; documentary photograph, not evidence of a treatment outcome. Credit: David Monniaux; CC BY-SA 3.0. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/?curid=374448

Медична пояснювальна композиція з фото коліматора для протонної терапії / Medical explanatory composite including a photographed proton-therapy collimator, a beam-shaping component. Credit: Al*from*Lig; CC BY-SA 4.0. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0 Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/?curid=148407715

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Обладнання центру протонної терапії в Орсе; документальне фото, не зображення результату лікування / Equipment at the Orsay proton therapy centre; documentary photograph, not evidence of a treatment outcome. Credit: David Monniaux; CC BY-SA 3.0. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/?curid=374448

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Proton therapy uses accelerated protons to irradiate tumors. Provisional statistics from the professional group PTCOG list roughly 350,000 patients treated with protons worldwide cumulatively from 1954 through the end of 2023. This is not more than 300,000 every year. The method grew from accelerator research, but did not originate solely at CERN: Robert Wilson’s paper on the medical use of fast protons appeared in 1946. Benefits and suitability depend on the particular clinical case.