Proton Therapy | Health | Doing Whats Best

Who is a good candidate for proton therapy?

Every person’s cancer is unique. That is why, after your diagnosis, our specialists at McLaren Health Care provide you with all of the necessary information to help you decide if proton therapy is appropriate for your treatment. Standard cancer treatment options for patients include surgery, chemotherapy and radiation therapy. While all of these options may offer varying levels of benefit for a cancer patient, proton beam radiation therapy is often considered more effective against localized cancers.

Proton therapy most often treats solid tumors in sensitive areas where conventional therapy may not be considered as the best option. It is a particularly effective modality for treating pediatric cancer patients because it can minimize damage to their still-developing and more sensitive organs.

Learn About Proton Therapy
Frequently Asked Questions

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Have questions about proton therapy? Simply reach out below and we will respond.

4100 Beecher Road, Flint, MI 48532
Hours: Monday - Friday: 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
Phone: (855) 697-7686

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What is Proton Therapy

Proton therapy is a radiation oncology treatment that uses protons to precisely target and treat tumors, while sparing healthy tissues and organs from unnecessary radiation. Standard cancer treatment options for patients include surgery, chemotherapy and radiation therapy. While all of these options may offer varying levels of benefit for a cancer patient, proton radiation therapy is often considered more effective against localized cancers.

Proton therapy most often treats solid tumors in sensitive areas where conventional therapy may not be considered as the best option.

Proton Therapy Frequently Asked Questions

Benefits of Proton Therapy

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Proton Therapy is non-invasive.

Proton therapy does not require surgical procedures to deliver treatment. As the patient lays on the table, radiation is delivered through protons that are directed to travel in the body, no further than the depth of the targeted tumor.

Patients experience minimal side effects.

With the advanced radiation technology at the McLaren Proton Therapy Center, protons deposit radiation energy to the target tumor to destroy the cancer cells, while sparing the surrounding healthy tissues. There is not an exit dose of radiation with proton therapy. The radiation doses precisely stop at the depth of the tumor, sparing nearby organs as much as 70 percent of unnecessary radiation. By not delivering radiation to those organs, many patients experience minimal side effects.

Proton therapy results in a better quality of life during and after treatment.

Patients that go through proton therapy treatment often can maintain a healthy and productive life. Many patients can continue the activities they love daily during treatment. Proton therapy also reduces the probability of secondary cancer due to the ability to spare healthy tissue.

Cancers Treated By Proton Therapy

Bladder Cancer
Brain and Central Nervous System Cancer
Breast Cancer
Esophageal Cancer
Head, Neck, and Skull Base Cancer
Kidney Cancer
Lymphoma
Liver Cancer
Lung and Thorax Cancer
Pancreatic Cancer
Pediatric Cancer
Prostate Cancer
Sarcoma
Spine and Chest Wall Cancer
Select Gynecological and Gastrointestinal Cancer
Recurrent disease

Directions and Overnight Accommodations

McLaren Proton Therapy Center

4100 Beecher Road
Flint, MI 48532
Hours: Monday - Friday: 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.

(855) 697-7686

McLaren Hospitality House

Located adjacent to McLaren Proton Therapy Center, McLaren Hospitality House provides comfortable, extended-stay housing at no or minimal cost and to create a healing, caring and comfortable environment for patients and their caregivers who are traveling long distances for treatment.

G-3170 Beecher Road
Flint, MI 48532

(810) 820-9800

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Lodging and Overnight Accommodations:
McLaren Hospitality House

McLaren Hospitality House in Flint, Michigan

A full complement of activities, programs, quiet spaces and amenities are available at the facility.

Patients receiving proton therapy require treatment daily for approximately six to eight weeks. McLaren Hospitality House was designed with this in mind and provides easy access to treatment, support services and care for other medical needs.

Call For Availability Learn more about McLaren Hospitality House.

Frequently Asked Questions

Proton therapy is the most technologically advanced method to deliver radiation treatments to cancerous tumors available today. A large machine called a synchrotron extracts protons from hydrogen atoms, accelerating them to almost the speed of light, and delivering the radiation with pinpoint accuracy. The unique characteristics of how protons interact within the human body allow it to deliver curative radiation doses while reducing doses to healthy tissues and organs, resulting in fewer complications and side effects than standard radiation therapy.

Proton therapy is highly targeted, precise radiation therapy that allows physicians to precisely aim the highest dose of radiation at the tumor and, thus, avoid healthy surrounding tissues. It is especially effective for cancerous tumors in sensitive areas. In addition, proton therapy is non-invasive and may reduce side effects, allowing patients to maintain their quality of life during and after treatment.

Proton therapy can treat all solid tumor cancers, including breast, colorectal, lung, brain, head and neck and prostate cancer. It benefits patients whose tumors are solid with defined borders, meaning the cancer has not spread to other parts of the body. It does not require surgery, making it ideal for inoperable tumors. For those cancers where it is effective, we will evaluate your diagnosis to find the best option.

The unique advantages of proton therapy lead to the potential for fewer harmful side effects, more direct impact on the tumor, and increased tumor control. Protons slowly deposit energy as they travel towards the cancerous tumor and then deposit the great majority of the radiation dose directly in the tumor, traveling no further through the body. This results in less healthy tissues and organs receiving unnecessary radiation, thereby reducing unwanted complications and side effects. Standard radiation therapy utilizes x-rays which deposits the majority of the radiation dose immediately upon entering the body while traveling to the tumor. Unlike protons, x-rays continue traveling through the body until exiting out the other side resulting in the delivery of unnecessary radiation to healthy tissues and organs. Simply put, protons STOP after depositing the radiation dose in the tumor, x-rays do not.

The McLaren Proton Therapy Center offers the latest generation, advanced synchrotron technology featuring the highest energy pencil beam scanning clinically available. It is the ideal technology for irregular shaped tumors near sensitive areas. In addition, pencil-beam scanning capability is a prerequisite for a proton center to offer intensity modulated proton therapy (IMPT). IMPT is a highly specialized proton therapy that delivers a precise dose of protons, often to constrained targets.

Medicare and most major insurance carriers in the U.S. cover proton therapy. In Canada, the Ministry of Health in your province may cover the cost of proton therapy in the U.S. with restrictions on the cancer type and the age of the patient among other selection criteria. Some private insurers in Canada have similar rules and restrictions. The McLaren Proton Therapy dedicated staff with expertise in insurance authorizations can answer your questions and advocate on your behalf with your insurance company. We can also work with you to provide a competitive self-pay quotation for proton therapy, and will coordinate your follow-up care with providers in your locality.

If you are within 1 ½ -2 hours from the Proton Therapy Center, you could probably drive in each day, but some patients may choose to temporarily relocate to the area. The McLaren Hospitality House, located on the campus of the McLaren Proton Therapy Center, provides convenient, comfortable and low-cost lodging for patients and families, complete with kitchen and laundry facilities. Our patient support services team can provide information about the McLaren Hospitality House and the surrounding area.