3. Radiation Oncology Treatment

     The types of beams used in external beam radiation therapy can be broadly classified into photons (usually X-rays) and particles (such as protons). Heavy particle therapy is a kind of particle therapy. It is called "heavy" particle because the mass of the particle it uses is greater than that of protons. At present, it is mainly carbon heavy particle.

     In traditional external radiation therapy (photon therapy), its energy gradually decreases as it travels deeper after entering the human body. For tumors located deep in the body, the photon beam may also damage the target during the process of reaching the target. Damage to normal tissue through which it penetrates. Due to its physical characteristics, particle radiation can concentrate energy release on the tumor site, so it can give sufficient doses to deep tumors while reducing damage to adjacent normal tissues. Compared with proton therapy, heavy particles have a higher relative biological effect. The relative biological effect of protons is similar to that of photons, and the biological effect produced by heavy particles is about three times that of photons. Therefore, for tumors that are not well treated by traditional radiation therapy, heavy particles can improve the control rate.

     The original heavy ion therapy facilities in Asia are mainly concentrated in Japan. Japan has been using heavy particles to treat malignant tumors for many years, and its results have been published in many literatures. For prostate cancer, early lung cancer, liver cancer, pancreatic cancer, Bone and soft tissue malignant sarcomas have good curative effect.

     In May 2023, Taipei Veterans General Hospital opened the first heavy ion radiotherapy center in Taiwan, making the treatment of pancreatic cancer from impossible to possible. Pancreatic cancer is resistant to conventional radiation and chemotherapy. One reason for this is that pancreatic tumors often have a dense stroma, which can act as a physical barrier and prevent therapeutic drugs from entering tumor cells. In addition, pancreatic cancer cells can exhibit an epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) phenotype and have a high proportion of cancer stem cells. Hypoxia or low oxygen levels are common features of pancreatic cancer and can lead to resistance to traditional drugs and radiation therapy. Receptivity. Carbon ion therapy is a promising treatment for pancreatic cancer because it has several advantages over conventional radiation therapy. Compared with traditional photon radiation therapy, carbon ions have a higher relative bioavailability, which means that they can provide greater anticancer ability, while potentially reducing toxicity to nearby normal tissues. Hypoxic tumor cells are common in solid tumors and may lead to resistance to conventional therapies. The unique advantage of carbon ion therapy is that it can effectively overcome the resistance of hypoxic tumor cells. In addition, carbon ion therapy has also been shown to have the ability to disrupt the specific stromal barrier of pancreatic cancer. The stroma is the supportive tissue surrounding a tumor that acts as a physical barrier, preventing therapeutic drugs from entering tumor cells. By disrupting this barrier, carbon ion therapy could enhance the delivery and effectiveness of other treatments such as chemotherapy, targeted therapy, and immunotherapy.