Proton Therapy for Children
The Cancer Center at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia offers proton therapy in collaboration with Penn Medicine at The Roberts Proton Therapy Center.
This new and advanced proton therapy center was the first in the mid-Atlantic region and was designed specifically to accommodate the needs of children with cancer and their families.
What is proton therapy?
Proton therapy is advancing cancer care at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia.
Proton therapy is an innovative form of radiation treatment that allows for more conformed radiation doses delivered to cancerous tumors.
Radiation therapy, while helpful in treating the tumor, often comes with side effects, some of which can be very harmful to growing and developing children.
Proton therapy’s greatest benefit is that it is less damaging to the surrounding healthy tissue because it delivers most of its energy to a very narrow field at the location of the tumor.
The treatment is particularly beneficial for children as less damage to healthy tissue, especially critical organs like the brain, heart, lungs and eyes, means greater chances of overall improvement, health and longevity.
Now offering pencil beam scanning proton therapy
Pencil beam scanning, also known as spot scanning, is now available at The Roberts Proton Therapy Center. This advance in the technology of proton beam therapy allows for greater control of radiation doses over the contours of a cancer tumor, and around critical structures in the brain and other parts of the body.
In this form of proton therapy, the narrow beam of radiation is shot at the tumor and swept over its contours like a painter’s brush, providing even greater precision in treatment. The most significant benefit is less potential for damage to healthy tissue.
Pencil beam scanning proton therapy increases treatment options and reduces treatment time for nearly all pediatric cancer patients who receive proton therapy. For some children, it will eliminate the need for general anesthesia.
Why choose CHOP for proton therapy
As a leader in childhood cancer treatment, we are specially equipped to meet the unique needs of children with cancer. Here are some advantages of choosing CHOP for your child's proton therapy treatment:
- World-class experts. Your child's cancer treatment team can consult with other CHOP subspecialists at any time.
- Emotional support. Through our psychosocial services, we help your family cope with your child's cancer diagnosis and treatment.
- Advancement of the science of proton therapy. Our team is committed to making remarkable advances in the science and technique of proton therapy to benefit our patients, including:
- Availability of pencil beam scanning, the most advanced form of proton therapy
- Using proton therapy where clinically indicated for sarcoma and brain tumors as well as lymphoma, and expanding on proton therapy techniques for these types of tumors
- Developing proton therapy techniques for delivering craniospinal radiation and treating Wilms' tumor
- Exploring the use of proton therapy for neuroblastoma
Proton therapy team
Proton therapy targets only cancer cells, significantly reducing the amount of healthy tissue exposed to radiation.
The CHOP-Penn collaboration offers a unique advantage to children with cancer who may benefit from proton therapy.
With access to the resources of two top-ranked health systems and cancer centers, children receiving proton therapy here are cared for by an extensive team of experts in the field of medical and radiation oncology.
The team includes pediatric oncologists, radiation oncologists, anesthesiologists, physicists, dosimetrists, nurses, radiation therapists, child life therapists and other medical professionals who understand the unique needs of children with cancer.
Customized treatment for every child
Each child scheduled to receive proton therapy has treatment planned weeks in advance by a team of radiation oncologists, physicists and dosimetrists. The team reviews, revises and adjusts the plan until they all agree that it offers the best balance between treating the tumor and sparing the normal tissue. The treatment planning process includes the following steps:
Simulation. CHOP oncologists consult with The Roberts Proton Therapy Center staff and schedule the child for a CT simulation. During the simulation, the child's body is positioned as will be during treatment and scans are taken (CT and possibly MRI).
Treatment plan. Radiation oncologists use the data from the scans to develop a treatment plan by:
- Defining the amount of tissue they need to treat
- Defining how much normal tissue they can spare
- Deciding how much radiation will be delivered to the tumor
List of instructions. Radiation oncologists create a list of instructions for the physicists and dosimetrists to use in developing the plan for delivering the radiation.
Agreement of team. All members of the treatment team agree on the plan and the plan goes through an extensive quality assurance process.
Confirmation of plan. The child is then again placed in the treatment position she will be in when treatment begins and the team uses imaging to determine whether the treatment can be delivered as planned.
Once that has been established, then scheduled treatments can begin.
Proton therapy research
Each child treated at The Roberts Proton Therapy Center will have the opportunity to enroll in studies examining the long-term neuropsychological and developmental effects of proton therapy. The results of these studies could help doctors refine and improve proton therapy treatments for future generations of children with cancer.
Wondering if your child is a candidate for proton therapy? Call to make an appointment or request a second opinion consultation at 215-615-5678. For non-urgent questions or requests, contact us online.
Resources for families
Learn more about traveling to CHOP for proton therapy.
Learn how proton therapy treats specific types of childhood cancers.
Download our proton appointment checklist and contacts sheet.
Visit the Penn Medicine Roberts Proton Therapy Center site.
Get driving directions and parking information for The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia.
Find lodging near The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia.
Learn about available amenities at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia.
Contact Us
To schedule an appointment or request a second opinion.
215-615-5678
For non-urgent questions or requests:
