LSU, Mary Bird Perkins team up on cancer treatment

LSU and Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center announced plans today to develop a proton therapy program for cancer patients, and intend to open a treatment and research center by 2012 at Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center, LSU says. Proton therapy allows doctors to deliver higher doses of radiation while sparing the surrounding healthy tissues and organs. “Improving outcomes for cancer patients while advancing medical research and cancer treatment leverages the academic power of the university and the private resources of Mary Bird Perkins,” LSU System President John Lombardi says. Historically, proton therapy has only benefited a small segment of cancer victims, mostly those with isolated solid tumors found on the brain, spine, head, neck or eye, but researchers believe the technology can benefit a wider range of patients. Dr. Kenneth Hogstrom, chief of physics at Mary Bird Perkins and chair of medical physics at LSU, leads the partnership. There are five proton therapy facilities in the United States, all affiliated with universities, and six more programs are under development, LSU says, not counting the new local program.