A new breakthrough in radiation therapy for cancer patients! Taipei Veterans General Hospital's groundbreaking ceremony was held on the 14th of this month for the Heavy Particle Cancer Therapy Center, a state-of-the-art cancer treatment center under construction. Clinical trials are expected to be conducted in mid-2021 to serve patients in need as soon as possible. This advanced medical equipment not only avoids unnecessary radiation damage, but also effectively attacks hard-to-cure malignant tumors, as well as the spread of cancer cells, metastasis, etc., also has the function of alleviating the condition, and the patient does not need to be hospitalized, which can be said to be the future of radiation therapy new tool.
The groundbreaking ceremony for the Advanced Reparticle Cancer Therapy (ARCT) Center at Taipei Veterans General Hospital (TVGH) was held on the 14th of this month. Clinical trials are expected to be conducted in mid-2021 to serve patients in need as early as possible. (Photo courtesy of Taipei Veterans General Hospital)
Particle therapy is a new type of anticancer weapon
The current treatment for malignant tumors is mainly based on surgery, chemotherapy, embolization, electrocautery, targeted therapy, and radiation therapy. In addition to photon therapy, particle therapy is one of the most hotly debated new anticancer weapons in recent years. Particle therapy is divided into light particle therapy (e.g., electron beam therapy) and heavy particle therapy (e.g., neutron, helium particle, carbon particle therapy).
In order to break through the bottleneck of traditional radiation therapy, Taipei Veterans General Hospital is planning to build a Heavy Particle Cancer Treatment Center, the protagonist of the heavy particle cancer treatment, which is a kind of advanced radiation therapy, different from the traditional radiation therapy that uses high-energy X-rays or electron beams, but the carbon atoms will be free into carbon ions, and then the use of synchrotron accelerates the particles to 70 percent of the speed of light, then irradiate the cancer foci, so that cancer can be treated. The method of cancer treatment is to irradiate the cancer foci by using a synchrotron to accelerate the particles to 70% of the speed of light.
Heavy particle rays have a unique Bragg Peak that can penetrate deep into human tissues and destroy cancer cells by precise positioning and then fully releasing the aggregated energy to completely destroy the double-stranded DNA of the tumor cells to achieve the excellent effect of treating cancer, but also because of its unique physical properties, the energy released by the carbon particle beams when they enter the normal tissues of the human body is extremely low, which prevents unnecessary radiation. The carbon particle beam will release very little energy when it enters the normal tissues of the human body, thus avoiding unnecessary radiation damage.
The heavy particle cancer treatment center was built with an amount of up to NT$4.2 billion, which was donated by the community for the benefit of more cancer patients, as well as disadvantaged patients.
2. It is more effective than traditional X-ray treatment for radiation-resistant malignant tumors that are difficult to cure.
3. Heavy particle therapy has a short duration and patients do not need to be hospitalized.
4. Heavy particle therapy is very suitable for treating localized tumors. If the cancer cells have already spread or metastasized, it can also alleviate the condition, but it cannot achieve the effect of a comprehensive cure.
This is the first heavy particle cancer treatment center in Taiwan, and the construction amount is as high as NT$4.2 billion. In order to benefit more cancer patients, as well as the disadvantaged patients, we have received donations from kind-hearted people in the society, including: Runtai Group to assist in the construction of the main building of the heavy particle cancer treatment center and the related important works, and the donation from the Hongguo Group and the related enterprises to assist in the purchase of the heavy particle therapy apex treatment instruments. The donation from the Hongguo Group and its related companies was used as part of the funding for the purchase of advanced therapeutic instruments for heavy particle therapy. In addition, the Taipei Veterans General Hospital Medical Foundation has raised NT$2.1 billion of its own money to create the opportunity for the Reparticle Cancer Treatment Center and has promised to provide 2% of free treatment slots every year after its operation. The Taipei Veterans General Hospital is looking forward to having more social enterprises to support and continue to donate to the work of the charity, in order to save or care for more disadvantaged patients.
Clinical trials are expected to be conducted in mid-2021
In order to help cancer patients enjoy the most advanced and effective cancer treatments as soon as possible, Runtime Group has also combined with Nikken Sekkei, a Japanese architectural firm that has experience in planning particle therapy centers in Japan, to create a friendly and safe space, including the first floor of the basement, in the west side of Taipei Veterans General Hospital, It is expected that the building will be delivered to VTC in 15 months for the installation and testing of heavy particle equipment, and is expected to undergo clinical trials in mid-2021, so that we can see the continued development of new anti-cancer treatment technology as early as possible in the hope that it can benefit more cancer patients.