Japan-based cancer radiotherapy company B dot Medical Inc disclosed on Thursday that it has started developing an ultra-compact proton cancer therapy system to replace the commonly used x-ray cancer therapy system (LINAC) in hospitals.

Proton cancer therapy is a high-precision radiation therapy. The proton (hydrogen atomic nucleus) is accelerated to up to 60% of light speed, delivered to the treatment room and is used to irradiate affected areas to kill cancer cells. Proton therapy is expected to be highly effective, with the ability to concentrate the beam on the target, keeping the irradiation of surrounding normal tissues limited. More than 180,000 patients have been treated in proton therapy over the years, B dot Medical said.

The use of proton cancer therapy is applicable for health insurance in Japan for paediatric cancer, prostate cancer, head and neck cancer and bone and soft tissue tumours. The number of patients that receive proton cancer therapy is expected to continue increasing.

According to the company, it has devised a non-rotating gantry in an ultra-compact proton cancer therapy system to bend the proton beam, without requiring a rotating mechanism. This non-rotating gantry, which uses a superconducting magnet as a bending magnet, allows the system to be downsized. The new ultra-compact proton cancer therapy system can be installed in hospitals in the space of the commonly used x-ray cancer therapy system.