Overvirw of Carbon Ion Radiotherapy at NIRS

In June 1994, The the world-first clinical center offering carbon ion radiotherapy (C-ion RT) was set to open in 1994 at NIRS, Japan, using HIMAC. Among several types of ion species, carbon ions were chosen for cancer therapy because they were judged to have the most optimal properties in terms of superior physical and biological characteristics. As of January March 2009, a total of 4,494 504 patients have been registered for C-ion RT. Clinical results have shown that C-ion RT has the potential ability to provide a sufficient dose to the tumor, together with acceptable morbidity in the surrounding normal tissues. Tumors that appear to respond favorably to carbon ions include locally advanced tumors as well as those with histologically non-squamous cell types of tumors such as adenocarcinoma, adenoid cystic carcinoma, malignant melanoma, hepatoma, and bone and /soft tissue sarcoma. By taking advantage of the unique properties of carbon ions, treatment with small fractions within a short treatment period has been successfully carried out for a variety of tumors. This means that the facility can be operated more efficiently in carbon ion therapy, offering treatment for a larger number of patients than is possible with other modalities over the same period of time