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NHS in U.K. to bring proton therapy to Manchester and London

by Gus Iversen, Editor in Chief | July 27, 2015
Business Affairs Rad Oncology Pediatrics Proton Therapy Radiation Therapy
Proton therapy appears to be undergoing a tipping point right before our eyes. Last week Varian Medical Systems announced a contract to bring proton therapy to New York City, and this week it is announcing two contracts in partnership with the National Health Services (NHS) in the U.K.

The U.K. government is investing £250 million in building and equipping the Christie NHS Foundation Trust in Manchester and the University College London Hospitals (UCLH) proton center in London.

The building contractor for the Manchester facility will be Interserve Construction Ltd., part of Interserve Plc, an international support services and construction group. The UCLH center will be built by Bouygues U.K.

Varian is contracted for up to £80 million for equipment supply and service, with installation expected to take place in August of 2017.

"ProBeam was selected after an extremely rigorous and thorough tender process that identified Varian's technology as the most suitable for the country's future proton therapy needs," said Dow Wilson, Varian's CEO, in a statement.

"As the leading supplier of radiotherapy equipment and software to the NHS we will be able to leverage our existing U.K.-based engineering and logistics infrastructure to deliver industry leading technology while meeting the NHS requirement for value for money," Wilson continued.

The NHS currently utilizes a Proton Overseas Programme, which funds the treatment of patients who are clinically appropriate for proton therapy to receive treatment in other countries.

While the U.K. currently has no proton therapy facilities in operation, an agreement has already been struck with IBA and Proton Partners International for three single-room proton centers to open in private clinics. Unlike those facilities, the Varian centers will each have three rooms and therefore capabilities to accommodate larger patient throughput.

In the U.K. several stories of pediatric patients traveling abroad for proton therapy have received media attention. Most notably, the case of five-year-old Ashya King, whose parents were briefly imprisoned in Spain last summer due to their decision to overrule their Southampton General Hospital doctor's instructions and seek proton therapy outside the U.K.

Ashya King received proton therapy in Prague and his parent have since reported a recovery with no evidence of remaining cancer.

The new facilities, slotted for construction in Manchester and London, are expected to open in 2018.

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