Earlier this month, a major milestone was reached in the opening of the Connecticut Proton Therapy Center in Wallingford, CT. A joint effort between Yale New Haven Health System (YNHHS) and Hartford HealthCare (HHC), the Center is scheduled to open later next year.
With the installation of the cyclotron, the powerful 55-metric-ton machine that is essential to delivering proton therapy, patients at Smilow Cancer Hospital are now one step closer to having access to the only facility in Connecticut offering treatment with proton therapy. Proton therapy is a type of radiation therapy that uses a high energy beam of protons to treat cancer. The main advantage of proton therapy over other types of radiotherapy is that the dose is more finely controlled. This method significantly reduces entry, exit, and scattered radiation, allowing our physicians to safely deliver higher doses of radiation to tumors with fewer side effects.
“We look forward to bringing proton beam therapy to patients receiving care at Smilow Cancer Hospital who may benefit from this advanced form of treatment. Access to this treatment, close to home, will be transformational for many patients and we are excited that the heart of the Center is now in place,” says Peter M. Glazer, MD, PhD, Robert E. Hunter Professor of therapeutic radiology and professor of genetics.
Proton therapy is particularly effective in treating many solid tumors, including tumors of the brain and central nervous system, eye, gastrointestinal tract, head and neck, liver, lung, prostate, spine and breast. It is particularly beneficial for children, as they are more vulnerable to damage to healthy tissue from radiation. This milestone brings our patients one step closer to benefiting from this innovative cancer treatment, promising a new era of hope and healing for patients across the state.