Innovations in Oncology: Hadrontherapy, a new energy against cancer

During Intercare 2017, Italy’s first international Medical Tourism Exhibition and Conference, a seminar session was devoted to the presentation of the latest innovations in oncology treatments.

Prof. Roberto Orecchia, Scientific Director of Fondazione CNAO, presented Hadrontherapy, an innovative type of radiation therapy. Hadrons are particles made by quarks so that the therapy can also be known as heavy particles radiotherapy, particle therapy, neutrontherapy, protontherapy, CIRT (Carbon Ion RT).
The therapy is still relatively new with less than 15.000 patients treated worldwide in only few centres in the world which mainly use protons. Ion Therapy, particularly Carbon Ion is a new frontier in research.

Fondazione Cnao, in Pavia, 40 km south of Milan, is one of the only four centres in the world using both Proton and Ion Therapy, thanks to a synchrotron, designed by Cern, used to accelerate particles.

Hadron Therapy is especially valid for radio resistant or non operable tumors and its high precision maximizes the destruction of cancerous tissues while minimizing collateral effects on healthy tissues.
For example, this treatment is very important in pediatric patients where it is imperative to reduce the dose and the risk of secondary tumor induced by radiation and to avoid other problem in growing bodies.

Many tumors can be treated in a more efficient way with hadrontherapy such as Uveal melanoma, Eye melanoma, Base of skull chordomas. Tumors that can be affected by high LET particles must have specific conditions such as radioresistance for genetic alteration, Immuno Modulation, Radioresistance for proliferation status, Radioresistance for intratumoral micromilieau.

To watch the full speech of Prof. Orecchia and download the presentation, click here