Zastosowanie i ograniczenia terapii protonowej

Abstract

Different methods of treatment are dependent on the type of tumour. The dominant form of treatment is still surgery, which can be used as an independent method of treatment or it can be combined with other methods. Surgical treatment may be replaced by other possible alternatives such as chemotherapy or radiotherapy. Nowadays, the most commonly used radiotherapy is this with the usage of protons or electrons. However, proton beam therapy is becoming increasingly important. On the one hand it has many advantages; for example, it decreases rapidly the dose behind the Bragg peak, reduces significantly the time of treatment or reduces the appearance of secondary malignancies. On the other hand, there are also disadvantages. For instance, high cost of production the beam and the cost of therapy itself, problems with the dose's inhomogeneity during the air passing or appearance of nuclear reactions. Proton therapy is mainly used in the treatment of changes localized in the eye, brain and in paediatrics. The aim of this study is to present applications and limitations of proton beam therapy.