Depending on whether you’ve just been diagnosed or someone close to you has cancer, the news can be a devastating one. It can cause several things and scenarios to pop up in your mind. You may be worried about what the treatment will be like or the side effects. Fear of losing one’s life or a loved one can also set in too.
But learning all you can about the disease can help to allay your fears and ease your worries. Yes, cancer is curable.
Being a deadly disease, several methods of treatment have been developed to combat it. The main aim still remains the same: To kill tumor cells. But, depending on the patient, and the location of the tumor, several options can be considered in treating cancer.
There are several options available to cure cancer, some of which are Surgery, Chemotherapy, and Radiation. In surgery, the main goal is ensure that the tumor is removed. In Chemotherapy, drugs are used to eliminate the cancer cells. Radiation or Radiotherapy involves using high-energy beams to kill cancer cells.
There are different types of radiotherapies, one of which is Proton Therapy, also known as Proton Beam Therapy which involves proton beam radiation. You may have heard the doctor suggest this method of treating cancer or you’ve read about it.
According to BBC, Proton Beam Therapy uses a high energy beam of protons rather than high energy X-rays to deliver a dose of radio therapy for patients with cancer. This form of cancer therapy targets and eliminates the cancerous cells. But what makes it different? What are the advantages of choosing Proton Therapy over other kinds of cancer treatments?
1. It causes less damage to surrounding tissues
In other forms of radiotherapy, high energy beams of radiation which are used to kill cancer can cause damage to surrounding tissue. This occurs because unlike in Proton Therapy, most of the radiation is not totally focused on the area needing the treatment.
In Proton Therapy, proton beams are precisely aimed into cancerous cells. This is an advantage because it allows for a higher radiation dose to the tumor. Once it hits the cancer cells, the beam of protons stop. As thus, there’s less continual radiation after the cancer cells have been hit. This reduces damages to surrounding tissues
2. It is useful for treating cancer in critical areas
Since there’s the advantage of proton beams precisely hitting the cancerous cells, Proton Therapy is useful for treating cancer in critical areas like the brain. According to NHS, this type of therapy is very useful in treating brain tumors in young children whose brains are still developing.
It is also used to cure some rare cancers in areas around the optic nerve, the skull, or the spine.
3. There are fewer side effects involved
Although this varies from person to person, the precision of the proton beams in this therapy is an advantage. Since the area of the body being targeted won’t be exposed to radiation for too long, there may be less severe side effects such as nausea and fatigue.
These are some of the advantages of Proton Therapy in treating cancer.
It’s however good to note that most forms of cancer treatments are effective. What type of treatment is used depends largely on what the patient is comfortable with.
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