The University of Alabama at Birmingham, in partnership with Proton International, will open the state’s first proton therapy center for cancer treatment.

The university is the fourth organization to partner with Proton International, and UAB will add to the 23 operating proton centers and seven centers under construction.

Proton therapy targets tumors with less damage to surrounding tissue and fewer side effects. (Contributed)

PI focuses on one- or two-room facilities to perform a radiation therapy that targets tumors to cause less damage to surrounding tissues and has fewer side effects. Since the first U.S. center opened in 1990, nearly 30,000 patients have been treated. It is estimated that 250,000 people can benefit from the treatment.

UAB Medicine will be among a select group of hospitals to offer advanced proton therapy technology using a compact system with pencil beam scanning, developed by Varian Medical Systems.

Proton therapy is effective in treating solid cancer tumors from various areas of the body including the brain, spine, head and neck, lung, prostate, colon and some breast tumors. The use of proton therapy on children is promising because of its precision and lesser degree of long-term side effects.

The addition of the UAB proton therapy center will increase research regarding the radiation method. The enrollment of new patients will increase the recorded data regarding clinical outcomes of the therapy.

Dr. James A. Bonner, the Merle M. Salter endowed professor and chairman in the UAB School of Medicine Department of Radiation Oncology, said, “We are excited about the opportunity to offer this cutting-edge approach for patients and families in Birmingham, across Alabama and beyond.”

“UAB Medicine will be involved in offering a very important cancer treatment alternative to its patients with the addition of protons,” said PI CEO and founder Chris Chandler. “UAB will offer the most advanced radiation technology available.”