Welcome to GRACE. Since radiation beams can penetrate human tissue without a problem, the only reason that a patient could be too large for proton therapy would be the physical limitations of the scanner itself (the amount of space between the scanner and the platform on which the patient lies). You might want to inquire if that is the limiting factor in your friend's situation. If that's the issue, you may be able to find another facility which has a scanner with sufficient clearance.
There is also the issue of whether your friend's situation is one in which proton beam therapy is likely to be superior to standard SBRT, as in many cases it is not. Proton therapy gets a great deal of hype because it's the newest technology, but its increased targeting accuracy is not needed in most cases, as standard SBRT is already quite accurate.
Reply # - November 17, 2017, 03:21 PM
And by that I mean patient
And by that I mean patient size limit; my friend was told he is "too large" to receive PBT. He is 6'4" and weighs 350 lbs.
Reply # - November 18, 2017, 07:45 AM
Hi annene1,
Hi annene1,
Welcome to GRACE. Since radiation beams can penetrate human tissue without a problem, the only reason that a patient could be too large for proton therapy would be the physical limitations of the scanner itself (the amount of space between the scanner and the platform on which the patient lies). You might want to inquire if that is the limiting factor in your friend's situation. If that's the issue, you may be able to find another facility which has a scanner with sufficient clearance.
There is also the issue of whether your friend's situation is one in which proton beam therapy is likely to be superior to standard SBRT, as in many cases it is not. Proton therapy gets a great deal of hype because it's the newest technology, but its increased targeting accuracy is not needed in most cases, as standard SBRT is already quite accurate.
JimC
Forum moderator