Proton Beam Therapy Equipment Cost

Traditional proton therapy systems were too expensive too large and much too complex for most cancer treatment centers.

Proton beam therapy equipment cost.

But that calculus is changing. Utilising pencil beam scanning for an advanced level of precision proton beam therapy uses high energy proton beams that are directed to the target area with pinpoint accuracy and are delivered in the exact shape of the tumour. The equipment required for proton beam treatment is massive and expensive. Particle accelerators don t come cheap.

Mevion transformed radiation oncology by inventing compact proton therapy shrinking the equipment footprint and the operational and financial costs significantly while still delivering a powerful cancer fighting tool. Proton therapy when compared to traditional radiation treatments can be four to seven times more due to the specialized equipment and expertise required to run the equipment. The equipment used for proton therapy initially carried a price tag of between 120 million and 200 million which gave many facilities pause lagasse writes. Without insurance proton therapy costs can range anywhere from as little as 30 000 to more than 135 000 without insurance.

Particle accelerators don t come cheap. A synchrotron the machine that speeds up the protons before they enter the body typically requires its own building and costs about 100 million.