WVLT’s Kelli Parker interviews Provision Center for Proton Therapy’s Dr. Matt Ladra, Director of Pediatric Services, about the benefit of proton therapy for certain types of childhood cancers.
Proton therapy has been used for more than 30 years to treat children. Proton therapy is most commonly used in pediatric tumors of the brain and spine, such as medulloblastoma, ependymoma, germ cell tumors, and low grade gliomas, but it can be beneficial in any tumor that arises in close proximity to vital structures like the heart, lung, kidneys, and reproductive organs. The Provision Center for Proton Therapy is the first proton center to open in Tennessee and will join the University of Florida Proton Institute as the only two centers in the southeast treating pediatric patients.