Queen Máxima to officially open the UMCG proton therapy center

Having started patient treatments in January 2018, the UMCG proton therapy center is the first center in the Netherlands to offer proton therapy. It is the only center in the Netherlands allowed to treat children with proton therapy technology. These treatments will be carried out in close collaboration with the Prinses Máxima Center for pediatric oncology, located in Utrecht. During their weeks-long treatment, the UMCG offers children – and their family – a comfortable stay in the ‘Familie De Boer Huis’.

Sparing healthy tissues

Proton therapy is an innovative radiotherapy technique for the treatment of cancer patients. Proton therapy allows the highly accurate delivery of a radiation dose to the tumor, thereby reducing the dose to surrounding healthy tissues and reducing the probability of unwanted long-term side-effects. As their developing tissues are especially sensitive to radiation damage, children will have the most benefit from this treatment. Other patients, such as those having a tumor in the head and neck region, will benefit as well. In a nationwide collaboration, radiation-oncologists have defined which patients are eligible for proton therapy.

UMCG Comprehensive Cancer Center

The proton therapy center is a part of the UMCG Comprehensive Cancer Center, which offers both adult and pediatric cancer patients all available treatments at a single location. For referral of cancer patients to proton therapy, the UMCG works closely together with the other hospitals and radiotherapy institutes in the North-East of the Netherlands. The UMCG proton therapy center can treat up to 600 patients per year. An estimated 80 to 100 of these patients will be pediatric patients.