Louvain-La-Neuve, Belgium, October 7, 2016 – IBA, the world’s leading provider of proton therapy solutions for the treatment of cancer, announces the delivery of the accelerator for the first proton therapy unit in The Netherlands, in Groningen. The C230 accelerator optimized for best in class treatment with Pencil Beam Scanning (PBS) arrived from the headquarters in Louvain La Neuve, Belgium, to the site at 5 am on October 5. Full rigging was completed that afternoon.

IBA will equip the centre with the Proteus®PLUS* two-gantry room configuration, including its most advanced PBS and Cone Beam CT (CBCT) capabilities. The contract, signed on April 21, 2015, will also include a long-term operation and maintenance agreement. The center is scheduled to treat its first patient in December 2017.

The proton therapy center is part of the UMC Groningen Comprehensive Cancer Center, located in the University Medical Center Groningen (UMCG). With about 1,300 beds and more than 12,000 staff, UMCG is one of the largest hospitals in The Netherlands, and the largest employer in Northern Netherlands. Joining an existing radiotherapy unit, the proton therapy center fits within the focus of the UMCG on Healthy Ageing: increasing the number of healthy years and enabling people to actively participate in society for longer.

Bert-Jan Souman, Managing Director of the Proton Therapy Center Groningen at the UMCG highlighted the qualities of the IBA team in the announcement, saying: “Thanks to the careful and professional preparation by the IBA team and everyone else involved, the cyclotron rigging has been successfully accomplished, completing the technical ‘heart’ of our proton therapy center. We look forward to seeing the proton therapy center open its doors by the end of 2017 and providing this technology for the benefit of thousands of cancer patients in Holland.”

Olivier Legrain, the Chief Executive Officer of IBA, commented: “We are proud to have accomplished an important installation milestone in a facility of such a quality and importance in The Netherlands. With our unique experience, we are committed to supporting UMCG to provide proton therapy to more patients across the region who would benefit from this high-quality cancer treatment.”

About UMCGUniversity Medical Center Groningen (UMCG) is one of the largest hospitals in the Netherlands and it is the biggest employer in the north of the country. A staff of over 12,000 people work in patient care and in leading medical research, focusing on ‘healthy ageing´. For its research and educational function the hospital has close ties with University of Groningen. Some 4,000 students are currently enrolled in degree courses to become physicians, dentist, or movement scientist, and over 450 are doing a medical residency. Patients come to UMCG for basic care, but also for highly specialized diagnostics, examinations or treatment. All patients in the north of the country with complicated or rare conditions are eventually referred to UMCG. Excellent care is always based on the latest insights and given by the best doctors and nursing staff. Together with the support services they always focus on that one common goal: building the future of health. For more information visit: www.umcg.nl