Title: Protons – The project, buildings, installations etc., Lars Nordenhof
DCPT – Danish Centre for Particle Therapy will be located in Aarhus Denmark. The centre is national for Denmark and will be on a high international level. This lecture will touch the tender strategy – why the turnkey contractor model was chosen and furthermore show examples of the complexity in installations in the building and how this is handled. This type of project has to be managed extraordinary precise with a full focus on every single delivery, such as shielding, cabling, distance of respect for other equipment. The proton equipment is such a big factor in size, weight and installation demands etc. that other normally complex installations, user demands and more, will seems as small shades of grey.
Title: Protons – How does it work, Stefan Schmidt
Since in 1946 Robert Wilson was the first to suggest making use of the proton Bragg peak in radiation therapy, a huge development has taken place from the first proton treatments at research facility beamlines to the modern clinical facilities with dedicated and industrially manufactured equipment and high patient capacities. This presentation will explain the techniques used today, starting with the proton accelerator, continuing with the treatment delivery techniques (from passive scattering to pencil beam scanning), patient positioning components, integrated imaging, safety components, etc., and provide a brief outlook to ongoing and potential future developments in the proton therapy technique.
Title: Protons – Clinical aspects, Klaus Seiersen
”Particle therapy is currently one of the hottest topics in cancer therapy. Though the first treatment was given in the 1950s, it was only around 1990 that the modality moved out of physics laboratories to hospitals, and another 10 years before hospital-based treatments exceeded treatments at research facilities. But what exactly is the clinical difference between traditional linac-based x-ray treatments and particle therapy? Is this a cure for cancer, or just another step in a never-ending technological arms race? The talk will focus on the differences between x-rays and particles; both advantages and problems with particle therapy will be presented, and it will be discussed why particle therapy is still very much an experimental treatment.”