Treatments

Proton therapy for head and neck cancers

Proton therapy is an advanced treatment that delivers radiation to the exact size, shape and depth of your tumor. It allows your physician to treat your cancer while helping to protect nearby healthy tissue, like your brain, eyes and spine.

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“The treatment choices can be overwhelming. However, after careful deliberation with my physicians I decided on proton therapy because it could target the cancer more precisely while protecting as much surrounding healthy tissue as possible.”

— Mark, head and neck patient

Tough on Your Tumor. Easier on Your Body.

For head and neck tumors, treatment usually means surgery, chemotherapy and radiation. When it comes to radiation, proton therapy provides a safer option. It lowers the risk of side effects such as vision loss, hearing loss, trouble swallowing and dry mouth.

With standard X-ray radiation therapy, the radiation dose is highest right where the X-rays enter your body. The X-rays keep giving off radiation as they go through your tumor and the tissue beyond. With proton radiation therapy, treatment is sent right to the tumor. The goal is for less radiation to reach your nearby tissue.

Chemotherapy Treatment that uses drugs to stop the growth of cancer cells, either by killing the cells or by stopping them from dividing. It may be given alone or with other treatments. Treatment that uses drugs to stop the growth of cancer cells, either by killing the cells or by stopping them from dividing. Chemotherapy may be given by mouth, injection, infusion or on the skin, depending on the type and stage of the cancer being treated. It may be given alone or with other treatments, such as surgery, radiation therapy or biologic therapy. Radiation therapy The use of high-energy radiation from X-rays, gamma rays, neutrons, protons and other sources to kill cancer cells and shrink tumors. The use of high-energy radiation from x-rays, gamma rays, neutrons, protons and other sources to kill cancer cells and shrink tumors. Radiation may come from a machine outside the body (external-beam radiation therapy), or it may come from radioactive material placed in the body near cancer cells (internal radiation therapy or brachytherapy). Systemic radiation therapy uses a radioactive substance, such as a radiolabeled monoclonal antibody, that travels in the blood to tissues throughout the body. Side effects A problem that occurs when treatment affects healthy tissues or organs. Some side effects of cancer treatment are nausea, vomiting, fatigue, pain, decreased blood cell counts, hair loss and mouth sores.

Image of head and neck cancer being treated with a more precise dose of radiation delivered with proton therapy (left). X-ray radiation (right)

These pictures show treatment for head and neck cancer. The colored areas get radiation. The black, gray and white areas do not. With proton therapy (left), less healthy tissue is exposed to radiation. With standard X-ray radiation therapy (right), more healthy tissue is exposed.

Proton therapy uses a unique feature of protons: They give off the most radiation right before they come to a stop. Then the radiation falls to zero. That’s how we target treatment to your tumor and no further.

More precision means less damage to healthy cells in your brain, neck, eyes, sinuses, vocal cords and salivary glands. This can mean a faster recovery and fewer short- and long-term side effects.

If you have head or neck cancer, the radiation oncologists at our proton therapy facility can decide if proton therapy is right for you and tell you more about this option.

Radiation oncologist A physician who has special training in using radiation to treat cancer. Side effects A problem that occurs when treatment affects healthy tissues or organs. Some side effects of cancer treatment are nausea, vomiting, fatigue, pain, decreased blood cell counts, hair loss and mouth sores.

Standard radiation therapy (shown in blue) gives off the most radiation right after the X-rays enter your body. X-rays keep giving off radiation as they move through your tumor and then through healthy tissue on the other side (called the exit dose). Proton therapy (shown in yellow) releases the most radiation inside your tumor. Then the protons come to a stop. There is little to no exit dose compared to standard radiation therapy.

Types of Head and Neck Cancer Treated with Proton Therapy

Proton therapy may be an option for people with a wide range of head and neck cancers, including:

Base-of-skull tumors (such as tumors related to the anterior, middle and posterior cranial fossa; the sphenoid; and the temporal bone)
Sinonasal cancers (tumors in the paranasal sinuses and nasal cavity)
Cancers near the eyes and orbits (eye sockets)
Nasopharyngeal cancers
Small/early oropharyngeal cancers (tumors around the tonsils and tongue base)
Some salivary gland tumors (tumors of the parotid, submandibular and minor salivary glands of the upper aerodigestive tract)
Complex skin cancers that involve cranial nerves or lymph nodes of the neck
Unknown primary cancers (after a thorough surgical workup)

Proton therapy may also be an option for some people who have already had radiation therapy.

Pencil-Beam Scanning

Our radiation oncologists use pencil-beam scanning (PBS) to treat patients with proton therapy. PBS “paints” the tumor with a lot of very thin, very exact beams of protons. The beams are accurate down to millimeters. PBS sends very fast pulses of protons to each planned spot within the tumor until the entire cancer is treated. This method can lower the amount of radiation to healthy tissue even more.

Proton Therapy Facts

Compared to standard radiation therapy, proton therapy may reduce damage to the mouth, eyes, optic nerves, salivary glands and other organs. It could lower your risk of side effects like vision, hearing and smell loss.
Patients who get proton therapy instead of standard radiation therapy are about half as likely to have severe weight loss or need a feeding tube.
Treatments are safe, noninvasive (no cuts to the skin are needed) and painless for most patients, helping you recover faster and keep living your life.
Proton therapy may be an option for you even if you’ve already had radiation for cancer. In fact, it may be your only option for getting more radiation treatment.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved proton therapy for clinical use in 1988. More than 200,000 people worldwide have had this form of treatment.

Learn More

Radiation oncologist A physician who has special training in using radiation to treat cancer. Radiation therapy The use of high-energy radiation from X-rays, gamma rays, neutrons, protons and other sources to kill cancer cells and shrink tumors. The use of high-energy radiation from x-rays, gamma rays, neutrons, protons and other sources to kill cancer cells and shrink tumors. Radiation may come from a machine outside the body (external-beam radiation therapy), or it may come from radioactive material placed in the body near cancer cells (internal radiation therapy or brachytherapy). Systemic radiation therapy uses a radioactive substance, such as a radiolabeled monoclonal antibody, that travels in the blood to tissues throughout the body. Side effects A problem that occurs when treatment affects healthy tissues or organs. Some side effects of cancer treatment are nausea, vomiting, fatigue, pain, decreased blood cell counts, hair loss and mouth sores. Tonsils Two small masses of lymphoid tissue on either side of the throat.

What Is Proton Therapy?

Getting Proton Therapy Treatment

Head and Neck Cancer Treatments

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Our proton therapy team is here not only to treat your disease, but to listen to you and take care of you and your family. They are experts in proton therapy who focus on giving you personalized treatment and who understand your questions, needs and concerns.