The Pediatric Proton Foundation today announced that Dr. Kevin McMullen was appointed to the Board of Directors effective January 2, 2013. This appointment will bring the total number of board members to eight until the Foundation’s next Annual Meeting to be held in conjunction with the National Association for Proton Therapy’s Inaugural Annual Conference, “Impacting Cancer Outcomes through Proton Therapy” in Washington D.C. February 11-14, 2013.
Dr. McMullen is currently medical director of radiation oncology for Indiana University Health Hospital in Indianapolis, Indiana and a radiation oncologist at Indiana University Health Proton Therapy Center in Bloomington, Ind. Dr. McMullen is an associate professor of radiation oncology at the Indiana University School of Medicine, where he also holds the Indiana Lions Endowed Scholar in Cancer Survivorship. He also serves on two late effects task forces within the Children’s Oncology Group.
He completed his residency at Wake Forest University School of Medicine, with further residency and post-residency pediatric radiation oncology training at St Jude Children’s Research Hospital and Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. Dr. McMullen served his country in the U.S. Army in progressively increasing levels of medical leadership including being a Brigade Flight Surgeon for the Aviation Brigade of the First Cavalry Division headquartered in Fort Hood, Texas.
“The addition of Dr. McMullen will further enhance the outstanding talents and wide-ranging experience that our Board of Directors brings to the Pediatric Proton Foundation,” said Susan Ralston, Executive Director. “Dr. McMullen is widely respected and deeply experienced in pediatric cancer treatment through his past experience at Wake Forest and in his current positions at the IU Health Proton Therapy and with Riley Hospital for Children at IU Health.
Dr. McMullen is determined to continue to contribute to pediatric proton therapy advancements stating, “Because of my research in survivorship issues and prevention of late effects of cancer therapy, I believe I can offer insight as we further develop the scientific basis for appropriate use of this technology for cancer stricken children – one of IU Health Proton Therapy Center’s main focus and that of the Pediatric Proton Foundation. I am proud to volunteer my time for such a worthy organization.”
Click Here for Full Press Release
PPF
Showing posts with label proton radiaton. Show all posts
Showing posts with label proton radiaton. Show all posts
Tuesday, January 15, 2013
Friday, December 28, 2012
Pediatric Proton Foundation Objects to 55% Reduction in OPPS Payment Rates for Level II Proton Beam Radiation Therapy
In keeping with its mission of providing advocacy for pediatric cancer patients seeking proton therapy, the foundation filed a written comment letter to the Department of Health and Human Services regarding serious concerns about the planned reduction in OPPS payment rates for Level II Proton Beam Radiation Therapy. PPF went on to explain that..." 75% of young patients treated with proton therapy had brain tumors. More than half of those children treated were under nine years old. To reduce the proton center's ability to recover their cost when treating children, the most vulnerable population who is least able to articulate their concerns, will mean that less valuable treatment slots are being used for our children."
Wednesday, September 19, 2012
2011 Pediatric Proton Survey Results Announced
National Association for Proton Therapy and Pediatric Proton Foundation 2011 Survey Reveals 32% Increase in Pediatric Cases Treated at U.S. Proton Centers
Brain cancer continues to be the main tumor target for proton therapy - an advanced form of radiation treatment according to the National Association for Proton Therapy and the Pediatric Proton Foundation.
Click here for 2011 Pediatric Proton Survey Results
Thursday, August 2, 2012
Treating Brain Tumors in Children
FROM THE HEALTH GUIDE:
Of all the different kinds of solid tumors that a child might get, the brain tumor is the most common one. What causes brain tumors in children?
As with any other kind of tumor, a brain tumor comes about when a cell somehow gets out of control and multiplies uncontrollably. For the most part, science doesn’t yet have an answer to what causes brain tumors in children exactly. But scientists do suspect genetic reasons and environmental influences.
When a pediatrician suspects a brain tumor in a child, the first thing he does is to order an MRI or CT scan. A child needs be very still for any one of these scanning devices to work properly. Most of the time, with very young children, the doctor sedates the child so that she’ll stay still enough. Sometimes, if the results of the scan don’t seem conclusive enough enough, they’ll even try to do a biopsy – where they actually take out material from the brain.
It can take a whole team of specialists to successfully treat brain tumors in children. Most of the time, a child who is affected in this way will need surgery, chemotherapy and even radiation therapy. Treatment techniques have improved considerably now. Most of the time, the child will come out in one piece.
But it can be a very complicated process treating brain tumors in children. Typically, the team of doctors treating the child will include a neurosurgeon, a neurologist, a pediatric radiation therapist, a neuro-oncologist who specializes in children and so on.
Medical science is now clear about how brain tumors in children should be treated – it should be treated aggressively. And so, pediatric neurosurgeons are usually able to produce better outcomes – now that they know what exactly they need to do. The fact that there is all this high-tech equipment that they have at their disposal, helps too.
These days, they usually conduct pediatric brain tumor surgery in stages. They don’t go in and remove the tumor all at once. They do it a little bit at a time, over several operations. When they do it this way, they are able to make use of intervening periods to apply radiation therapy to the tumor so that it will shrink. The doctors hope that when they do this, they can be as non-invasive is possible. The third new techniques coming online all the time.
Instead of using radiation traditional radiation, the doctors use something called proton beam therapy.
In the future, all brain tumors in children will be treated this way. Proton beam radiation is a far more precise a way of going about it. There is no collateral damage to tissue that’s close to the tumor.
www.thehealthguide.org/tumors/treating-brain-tumors-in-children/
Of all the different kinds of solid tumors that a child might get, the brain tumor is the most common one. What causes brain tumors in children?
As with any other kind of tumor, a brain tumor comes about when a cell somehow gets out of control and multiplies uncontrollably. For the most part, science doesn’t yet have an answer to what causes brain tumors in children exactly. But scientists do suspect genetic reasons and environmental influences.
When a pediatrician suspects a brain tumor in a child, the first thing he does is to order an MRI or CT scan. A child needs be very still for any one of these scanning devices to work properly. Most of the time, with very young children, the doctor sedates the child so that she’ll stay still enough. Sometimes, if the results of the scan don’t seem conclusive enough enough, they’ll even try to do a biopsy – where they actually take out material from the brain.
It can take a whole team of specialists to successfully treat brain tumors in children. Most of the time, a child who is affected in this way will need surgery, chemotherapy and even radiation therapy. Treatment techniques have improved considerably now. Most of the time, the child will come out in one piece.
But it can be a very complicated process treating brain tumors in children. Typically, the team of doctors treating the child will include a neurosurgeon, a neurologist, a pediatric radiation therapist, a neuro-oncologist who specializes in children and so on.
Medical science is now clear about how brain tumors in children should be treated – it should be treated aggressively. And so, pediatric neurosurgeons are usually able to produce better outcomes – now that they know what exactly they need to do. The fact that there is all this high-tech equipment that they have at their disposal, helps too.
These days, they usually conduct pediatric brain tumor surgery in stages. They don’t go in and remove the tumor all at once. They do it a little bit at a time, over several operations. When they do it this way, they are able to make use of intervening periods to apply radiation therapy to the tumor so that it will shrink. The doctors hope that when they do this, they can be as non-invasive is possible. The third new techniques coming online all the time.
Instead of using radiation traditional radiation, the doctors use something called proton beam therapy.
In the future, all brain tumors in children will be treated this way. Proton beam radiation is a far more precise a way of going about it. There is no collateral damage to tissue that’s close to the tumor.
www.thehealthguide.org/tumors/treating-brain-tumors-in-children/
Sunday, February 12, 2012
IU Health Proton Therapy Center Brings Protons to More Children
Bloomington, IN –The Indiana University Health Proton Therapy Center in Bloomington, Ind., becomes the first proton center in the country to simultaneously treat children under anesthesia in two treatment rooms. Previously, the IU Health Proton Therapy Center could treat one anesthesia case at a time. The increase in the Center's ability to treat additional anesthesia cases makes it possible to deliver this treatment to more children with cancers/tumors of the head, neck, and spine.
The efforts to increase the anesthesia cases would not be possible without the partnership with Riley Hospital for Children at IU Health. "It is unique when world-class organizations work together as we do with Riley Hospital," says Dr. Peter Johnstone, president and chief executive officer of the IU Health Proton Therapy Center and chair and William A. Mitchell professor of radiation oncology for the IU School of Medicine. "Together, we provide an extraordinary resource for the most vulnerable patients: children with cancer." When treating young children with the precision of protons, it is critical that they are immobilized for their treatments and anesthesia is necessary to achieve this level of accuracy. Locally, the anesthesia efforts are provided by Bloomington Anesthesiologists, who are specially trained to work with children. Johnstone adds, "Without their expertise in pediatric anesthesia while under treatment, this work would not be possible."
The IU Health Proton Therapy Center provides treatment for patients of all ages; however, children are at the heart of the practice and accounted for 30 percent of the patient population in 2011. Since opening its doors in February 2004, one in every 12 patients has been treated under anesthesia and that number is anticipated to grow in 2012.
The efforts to increase the anesthesia cases would not be possible without the partnership with Riley Hospital for Children at IU Health. "It is unique when world-class organizations work together as we do with Riley Hospital," says Dr. Peter Johnstone, president and chief executive officer of the IU Health Proton Therapy Center and chair and William A. Mitchell professor of radiation oncology for the IU School of Medicine. "Together, we provide an extraordinary resource for the most vulnerable patients: children with cancer." When treating young children with the precision of protons, it is critical that they are immobilized for their treatments and anesthesia is necessary to achieve this level of accuracy. Locally, the anesthesia efforts are provided by Bloomington Anesthesiologists, who are specially trained to work with children. Johnstone adds, "Without their expertise in pediatric anesthesia while under treatment, this work would not be possible."
The IU Health Proton Therapy Center provides treatment for patients of all ages; however, children are at the heart of the practice and accounted for 30 percent of the patient population in 2011. Since opening its doors in February 2004, one in every 12 patients has been treated under anesthesia and that number is anticipated to grow in 2012.
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