In early 2018, Lancaster resident Chuck Hurley was a healthy 41-year-old, married father of two small children when he experienced an ear infection that persisted, even after traditional treatments. Hurley was referred to Penn Medicine for further consultation, and he and his family were shocked to learn that he had a rare form of cancer in his ear, which had spread to areas in his head and neck.
Because of the location of his cancer, his doctors recommended proton therapy, a form of radiation therapy that precisely targets and destroys cancer cells, with less damage to nearby healthy organs and tissue.
For Hurley, this meant 35 daily trips to Penn Medicine’s Roberts Proton Therapy Center in Philadelphia, five days a week for seven weeks – a total of more than 8,400 minutes traveling by car to receive approximately 525 minutes of proton treatments.
But starting this fall, patients like Hurley can receive this lifesaving treatment much closer to home. In late August, Hurley – who is now cancer-free and doing well – along with his family joined Penn Medicine Lancaster General Health for the celebratory opening of the new Proton Therapy Center at the Ann B. Barshinger Cancer Institute. The center is the second site in Pennsylvania to offer the revolutionary radiation therapy to cancer patients.
“The addition of technology, like Proton Therapy, represents how we are strategically bringing together the strengths of LG Health, which have been developed over the last 129 years, with the innovative clinical advances of Penn Medicine to deliver a higher level of advanced care to our community,” said John J. Herman, CEO, Penn Medicine Lancaster General Health.
Proton therapy is perhaps the most advanced treatment for cancer tumors located close to critical organs and highly sensitive areas, such as the spinal cord, heart, and brain. The treatment uses protons (which are positively charged atoms) as the energy source, offering greater precision and accuracy than conventional radiation therapy using X-rays.
“This is a first-in-the-world treatment that will be delivered right here in Lancaster,” said James Metz, MD, chair, Radiation Oncology, University of Pennsylvania Health System. “The Proton Therapy Center represents another example of how the clinical expertise and extensive research at Penn Medicine can translate into lifesaving treatments for communities regionally and throughout the country.”
The new facility is the only proton therapy center in Central Pennsylvania and represents a $48 million investment in innovative and essential patient care in Lancaster County and surrounding communities.
“For families in our community to have local access to the kind of care rarely seen outside a major academic medical center is nothing short of life-changing,” said Randall A. Oyer, MD, executive medical director, Ann B. Barshinger Cancer Institute. The Cancer Institute, which first opened in July 2013, provides care for more than 15,000 patients per year.
“Our aim is to create a seamless cancer system, so patients get the very best care, regardless of where in the system they receive that care,” said Kevin B. Mahoney, CEO, University of Pennsylvania Health System.