Fear not for this is not a beast machine out of a Transformer movie. The cyclotron is a particle accelerator that was installed in the new Proton Therapy Centre at Mount Elizabeth Novena Hospital on 11 December, to set the stage for more precise and safer treatment of cancer.
Proton beam therapy is considered the most advanced form of radiotherapy in the fight against cancer and will revolutionise the way cancer is treated in the region.
Using proton beams instead of X-rays, it is able to treat cancer with greater precision as the destruction of cancer cells can be highly targeted.
Besides better clinical outcomes, patients also benefit from lesser damage to nearby healthy tissues and organs, and fewer treatment-related side effects.
When opened in 2023, the Proton Therapy Centre will be the first of its kind among private hospitals in Southeast Asia.