“We are very excited to be able to expand our ability to treat patients here as the facility has become more online,” he said. “We’re very excited that this facility does some things that other radiation oncology facilities in the region haven’t been able to do before. Mainly deliver proton radiation therapy.”
Proton radiation therapy is one of the latest tools to combat cancer. It’s modern technology at its best, Pater said as he gave a tour of the facility and its 220 ton cyclotron that uses high-energy proton beams to deliver pinpoint strikes to tumors.
“Proton radiation therapy can decrease the side-effects of the radiation both in terms of what the patient experiences during the treatment and the long-term risks and side effects down the road,” Pater said. “The concept in the end is pretty simple — we are trying to deliver a lot of radiation to the tumor but as little radiation to other areas as possible.”
Whitney Hoffer is one of the Proton Therapy Center’s success stories.
In November 2015, Hoffer, 31, and her husband Billy learned that she was pregnant with their second child, just a year and a half after the birth of their daughter Makenzi. At 28 weeks into her second pregnancy, she was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
“Because they weren’t able to do some of the necessary scans when I was pregnant, due to concern for the baby’s health, they wanted to do follow up with radiation as a precaution,” Hoffer said. “They decided that I was a good candidate for proton beam radiation therapy.”
Under Pater’s care, Hoffer went through several weeks of the advanced proton radiation therapy and now is cancer-free living a normal life with two healthy children.
“I’m just extremely blessed,” Hoffer said. “The physicians, nurses and staff here are wonderful; they are truly the best. I never thought about getting a second opinion or going elsewhere for treatment. I knew they were always looking out for my best interest—from the biopsy to the radiation treatment. They’ve helped me get back to my life.”
“Her scans have been good and her prognosis is excellent,” Pater said of his patient. “So we are very optimistic about how she will be doing years from now as she raises her children.”
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