[Particle Therapy in Cancer Treatment-Current and Future Perspective]

Although local tumor controls in various cancers by radiation therapy(RT)are dose dependent, dose-volume effects on late toxicities of surrounding normal tissues have been also observed. Particle beam therapy(PBT)using protons and carbonions have physical advantages in RT for the treatment of various cancers because they can create a desirable dose distribution to the target volume using fewer portals compared with photon-based RT. Thus, dose-escalation using charged particles is a reasonable approach in RT, theoretically. Based on accumulation of the evidences that PBT shows the efficacy in treatment for several cancers, the number of particle therapy facilities have been rapidly increasing worldwide. The Japanese Society for Radiation Oncology organized a joint effort among research groups to establish standardized treatment policies of particle therapy according to disease through systematic reviews. Furthermore, multicenter prospective studies have been conducted for hepatocellular carcinoma and prostate cancer. At the present, PBT for pediatric tumors, prostate cancer, unresectable bone and soft tissue sarcomas, head and neck non-squamous cell carcinomas is covered by the Japanese national health insurance system. Boron neutron capture therapy(BNCT)is also a promising modality as biochemically targeted RT, but it has been performed in only limited facilities. Recent advances in technology, accelerator-based neutron sources will increase in BNCT facilities and lead to wider application of BNCT for various cancers.