LOMA LINDA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Ninety-three-year-old Harold Rabin of suburban Chicago lives a happy and vibrant lifestyle. The former president and founder of Illinois Technical College didn’t know that he would be around to tell this story 24 years ago when he became only the tenth person in the world to receive proton treatment for prostate cancer. But today the story has a happy ending, as Harold is cancer free and living a life that, without the miracle of science, wouldn’t have seemed possible.
“At the time I was diagnosed with prostate cancer, proton therapy had just been developed as a treatment for cancer,” recalls Harold. “One of my wife’s relatives, Dr. Michael Friedman, who was working as a research oncologist at the National Institute of Health in Bethesda, Maryland, suggested I consider proton treatment because studies were emerging proving the effectiveness of proton to eradicate prostate cancer while at the same time minimizing typical side effects like incontinence and impotence.”
Harold was then living in Palm Desert, California, not too far from Loma Linda University Medical Center, which, just a few years prior, had established the first hospital-based proton treatment facility in the world. Every day Harold would drive himself to and from treatment at what is now Loma Linda University Medical Center’s James M. Slater, MD, Proton Treatment and Research Center. The center is named after Dr. James Slater, who with his son Dr. Jerry Slater, developed proton technology and brought it to the public as a treatment for cancer.
Harold recalls feeling no pain or discomfort during treatment. He never experienced fatigue as each afternoon following his treatment, he had enough energy to play a twice-weekly round of golf or meet friends and family to socialize.
Since Harold’s treatment 24 years ago, the technology surrounding proton therapy has continued to be refined; and countless scientific studies have proven it to be an effective and often preferred treatment for many types of tumors including pediatric, head, neck, chest, breast and prostate. For example, continued research and development has further improved the target of the proton beam. Now an enhanced, more targeted proton beam delivery system referred to as active beam scanning (ABS) exists, which for certain types of cases, could serve as a more effective proton treatment delivery option.
Another example of the continued advancement of proton therapy is the development of the robotic positioning arm. Providing both the flexibility and accuracy needed for optimal treatment, the robotic arm decreases the time necessary to position a patient for proton treatments and more accurately verifies the location and dose of the prescribed treatment.
Today Harold lives a full and active life in his hometown of Northbrook, Illinois, where he continues to drive himself to his many social activities like going to dinner, theater and movies with friends. He volunteers by sharing his experiences with prostate cancer patients. His story is one of literally thousands of lives that have been saved due to the accurate and safe proton beam technology developed by Loma Linda’s scientists.
For more information about proton therapy, please contact the James M. Slater, MD, Proton Treatment and Research Center at 800-776-8667; or visit the center online at www.protons.com.
About the James M. Slater, MD, 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 worldwide. 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, Behavioral Medicine Center, 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.
