Particle Beam Therapy for Cancer of the Skull Base, Nasal Cavity, and Paranasal Sinus

Nobuyoshi Fukumitsu

doi:10.5402/2012/965204

Abstract

Particle beam therapy has been rapidly developed in these several decades. Proton and carbon ion beams are most frequently used in particle beam therapy. Proton and carbon ion beam radiotherapy have physical and biological advantage to the conventional photon radiotherapy. Cancers of the skull base, nasal cavity, and paranasal sinus are rare; however these diseases can receive the benefits of particle beam radiotherapy. This paper describes the clinical review of the cancer of the skull base, nasal cavity, and paranasal sinus treated with proton and carbon ion beams, adding some information of feature and future direction of proton and carbon ion beam radiotherapy.

Highlights

Particle beam therapy was first proposed in the 1940s [1] and was investigated in the USA, Sweden, and the Soviet Union in the 1950–1960s
This paper describes the status and prospects of particle beam therapy for the treatment of cancer of the skull base, nasal cavity, and paranasal sinus, including physical, biological, technical, and financial aspects
Particle beam therapy is advantageous for the treatment of tumors such as skull base, nasal cavity, and paranasal sinus cancers, as these tumors are often located close to critical organs

Summary

Introduction

Particle beam therapy was first proposed in the 1940s [1] and was investigated in the USA, Sweden, and the Soviet Union in the 1950–1960s. More than 48,000 patients have been treated with particle beams Most of these treatments were delivered using proton and carbon ion radiotherapy (RT). 2. Physical, Biological, Technical, and Financial Aspects of Particle Beam Therapy. The physical, biological, technical, and financial aspects of particle beam therapy differ largely from those of conventional photon RT. Both proton and carbon ion beams have features that are extremely different from those of photons. The particle range is determined by the energy of the incoming particles, and the Bragg peak can be spread out These features permit a more precise and conformal dose localization to the target, compared with photon beams. Particle beam therapy has great physical and biological advantages, only a few facilities throughout the world can perform this treatment, as mentioned above. Extremely precise and reproducible patient positioning coupled with high-quality imaging for treatment planning is prerequisites for this type of treatment

Skull Base Tumors

Nasal Cavity and Paranasal Sinus Cancers

Findings

Discussion and Future