LOMA LINDA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--A new infographic highlighting the efficacy of proton therapy in successfully treating cancer and allowing people to return to a comfortable quality of life has been issued by Loma Linda University Medical Center. The James M. Slater, M.D., Proton Treatment and Research Center at Loma Linda University Medical Center has treated more proton patients – more than 17,500 − than any other facility in the world.
According to the infographic, since Loma Linda opened the world’s first hospital-based proton therapy facility in 1990, the medical center has delivered more than 600,000 successful proton treatments to more than 240 different tumor sites. During that time the medical center has conducted more clinical trials on more tumor sites and published more long-term clinical outcome studies than any other proton facility in the world.
In addition, the new infographic confirms that Loma Linda is home to the world’s most experienced clinical proton therapy team. Its physicians have, combined, more than 170 years of clinical proton therapy experience; its physicists/dosimetrists, more than 270 combined years; and its therapists, more than 350 combined years.
“There are many differences between proton treatment centers, and potential patients should do their research before choosing where to receive treatment,” says Jerry D. Slater, M.D., chairman of the Department of Radiation Medicine at Loma Linda. “In health care experience is key; history shows that the more experience a facility and team of clinicians has treating a certain condition, the better the clinical outcomes.”
More than 1.6 million people are diagnosed with cancer each year, almost evenly split between men and women. The most prevalent form of cancer in men – 28 percent − is prostate cancer. Loma Linda has treated more than 12,000 prostate patients with proton therapy since 1990. At the same time the pinpoint accuracy of the proton beam also makes it a highly effective form of treatment for many other types of tumors that are often considered difficult to treat with standard radiation therapies. These include tumors found in the head and neck, lung, and breast.
For more information about the James M. Slater, M.D., Proton Treatment and Research Center’s emphasis on whole-patient care, please call 800-776-8667; or visit the center online at www.protons.com.
About the James M. Slater, M.D., Proton Treatment and Research Center
Established in 1990, the center was the first hospital-based proton therapy facility in the world. Today the center uses proton beam technology for many types of cancers and has treated more patients than any other proton treatment center in the world. The center is part of LLUMC’s comprehensive health system, which is widely respected as a healthcare leader that has pioneered work in such areas as organ transplants, proton treatment for cancers, cardiac care, physical rehabilitation, and acute pediatric and adult care as well as treatments for chemical dependence and other behavioral disorders. The health system – which includes Loma Linda University Medical Center and Children’s Hospital, LLUMC – East Campus, the Behavioral Medicine Center, the Heart and Surgical Hospital, LLUMC-Murrieta and physician clinics – collectively sees over 30,000 inpatients and about 750,000 outpatient visits a year. Visit us online at www.lomalindahealth.org.