GHP September 2016

10 | ghp September 2016 Health & Social Care Work Begins at One of England’s First Proton Beam Therapy Centres At the start of the year construction began at Proton Partners’ first cancer centre in Newport, Wales. The precise location of the third centre which is planned for London, is still to be announced. Each centre will be able to treat up to 500 patients every year and, in addition to proton beam therapy, will offer imaging, chemotherapy, traditional radiotherapy and well-being. Cllr Grant Davey, leader of Northumberland County Council, said: “It is fantastic to see work getting under- way on this pioneering centre being developed right here in Northumberland. “To have this facility based in the county is a real coup. It will not only make this type of treatment available to the region and beyond, but also bring more skilled jobs to Northumberland.” Mike Moran, chief executive of Proton Partners Inter- national, said that this “marks an important step in our plans to revolutionise cancer treatment across the UK. “Northumberland is the perfect location for our second centre– it is close to well-connected transport links and opens the door to proton beam therapy to prospective patients from the North of England and Scotland. “We have acquired the best technology available and our aim is that this area will evolve into a state of the art cancer treatment facility. The investment will also bring jobs, medical and administrative, to the area and will attract skilled individuals to the North East.” Karol Sikora, chief medical officer of Proton Partners International, added: “There is a pressing need to bring this type of treatment to the UK as studies have shown that at least 10% of patients who receive tradi- tional radiotherapy would be treated more effectively with protons. “By offering a variety of cancer therapies, our centres will deliver a fully comprehensive level of cancer care, tailored to fit the different needs of each patient – something which is not available in the UK at the moment.” There are currently no operational proton therapy fa- cilities in the UK and the demand for more specialised cancer care is growing. Proton Partners are at the forefront of bringing proton beam therapy to the UK and are working with class-leading providers which will equip the new centre to the highest specification. Proton Partners recently received £450,000 invest- ment from regional growth fund programme, Let’s Grow North East, for its Northumberland cancer centre. All three Proton Partners centres will treat NHS patients, medically-insured private patients and self-paying patients. For more information on Proton Partners, please visit: http://proton-int.com/ Pictured Right: L-R- David Knott, Mike Moran, Gordon Baltzer The creation of one of the first proton beam therapy cancer treatment centres to be built in England took a significant step forward on 23rd August, as work officially began on site. The centre, situated at the Earth Balance wellness site in Bomar- sund, Northumberland, will be the second to be built by Proton Partners International in the UK and is expected to be operation- al by February 2018.