San Antonio, October 21th, 2018 - IBA (Ion Beam Applications SA), the world's leading provider of proton therapy solutions for the treatment of cancer, is pleased to announce the first irradiation of a Spot Scanning Proton Arc (SPArc) plan at the Beaumont Health Proton Therapy Center on its single-room proton therapy solution Proteus®ONE*.

Proton arc therapy has the possibility to further improve the quality of the treatment by enhancing the dose conformity at the tumor level while reducing the total dose received by the patient. In addition, the Spot-Scanning Proton Arc therapy technique potentially increases the robustness of the treatment plan and may further improve the adoption of dose escalation and hypo-fractionation. This first irradiation achieved is the result of a long-standing research and development program between IBA and Beaumont Health's proton therapy team.

Craig Stevens, MD, PhD, Chairman, Radiation Oncology, Beaumont Health, commented:
"Beaumont Health has been leading the research in radiotherapy for decades and we have been working closely on this innovative project with IBA. Combining our expertise will bring patient treatment using proton therapy to the next level. Proton arc therapy has been contemplated for some time. The recent improvements in beam quality and delivery are enabling us to develop a clinically viable product. Spot-Scanning Proton Arc (SPArc) therapy has the potential to allow proton therapy practitioners to improve dose conformity at the tumor while further reducing dose to surrounding healthy tissue and increasing treatment effectiveness."

Olivier Legrain, Chief Executive Officer of IBA added: "We are delighted to have been part of the team that achieved the first irradiation of a proton arc therapy plan at Beaumont Health's Proton Therapy Center. The collaboration combines Beaumont Health's Proton Therapy Center's expertise in developing treatment plan algorithms with IBA's expertise in developing proton therapy delivery techniques to innovate and develop new techniques to treat patients using proton therapy. This relationship continues to work on bringing this new irradiation technique using Spot-Scanning Proton Arc plans to proton therapy users worldwide."


About IBA
IBA (Ion Beam Applications S.A.) is a global medical technology company focused on bringing integrated and innovative solutions for the diagnosis and treatment of cancer. The company is the worldwide technology leader in the field of proton therapy, considered to be the most advanced form of radiation therapy available today. IBA's proton therapy solutions are flexible and adaptable, allowing customers to choose from universal full-scale proton therapy centers as well as compact, single room solutions. In addition, IBA also has a radiation dosimetry business and develops particle accelerators for the medical world and industry. Headquartered in Belgium and employing about 1,500 people worldwide, IBA has installed systems across the world.

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