China has successfully carried out a medical procedure to treat
malignant tumors using a heavy ion beam.
The new heavy ion beam radiotherapy procedure for malignant
tumors was carried out by the General Hospital of Lanzhou Command
of the People's Liberation Army and the Institute of Modern Physics
of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (IMPCAS).
From Nov. 6 to 16, the two partners treated four patients using
a heavy ion beam. After a month, the size of the patients' tumors
had shrunk by 60 to 80 percent on average.
The four patients have tumors in their nose, breast, lung and
abdomen respectively.
"In the new therapy, the heavy ion beam targets the tumor
directly. This technique damages less normal tissue than
traditional surgical procedures and has fewer side effects," said
Li Sha, the doctor in charge of the radiotherapy.
Li predicted that the four patients' tumors would disappear in
one to two months.
"The success of these clinical tests shows that China's cancer
technology has reached an internationally advanced level," said
Zhang Hongsheng, an IMPCAS researcher.
"Currently, only the United States, Germany and Japan have the
heavy ion beam technology, which is recognized as an advanced
radiotherapy for the treatment of malignant tumors," Zhang
said.
(Xinhua News Agency December 21, 2006)