LVHHN Announces Possible New Cutting-Edge Cancer Therapy

Lehigh Valley, Pa. (Aug. 12, 2008) – Lehigh Valley Hospital and Health Network (LVHHN) and Proton Therapy, Inc. of Marlton, NJ, have signed a memorandum of understanding under which LVHHN would provide proton beam therapy cancer treatment to communities throughout the Lehigh Valley region and beyond.  LVHHN and Proton Therapy, Inc. will continue to finalize the details of an agreement over the next few weeks.   

“We were looking for a very strong clinical partner, and we found one at Lehigh Valley Hospital and Health Network,” said Irvin Richter, chairman, Proton Therapy, Inc, “This is a health network that has been recognized by U.S. News & World Report for 13 straight years and has clearly established itself as a national leader in cancer care.” The project will be managed by Hill International, one of the largest construction consulting firms in the world.  Hill is a publicly traded company listed on the New York Stock Exchange.

Proton beam therapy is a form of radiation therapy for cancer treatment that delivers protons instead of photons, which are used in conventional radiation therapy. The dosage of a proton beam can be better controlled to limit the energy that affects the body’s healthy tissue while maximizing the dose at the tumor. Currently proton beam therapy is being offered at just six sites in the U.S., with the closest to Pennsylvania located in Boston.  The proposed proton beam therapy center will be located on the Lehigh Valley Hospital – Muhlenberg campus.  The cost of the project is estimated to exceed $125 million dollars.

“Clearly this is the future of radiation therapy,” says Victor Risch, M.D., chair of LVHHN’s department of radiation oncology.  “The department has been studying this technology and its benefits for ten years.  The advantages of proton beam therapy to the patient are phenomenal.”  The cancer program at LVHHN performs more than 30,000 radiation treatments annually making it one of the largest in Pennsylvania.

Dr. Risch says proton therapy delivers a dose of radiation equal to photon therapy but with the ability to minimize the risk of side effects and secondary malignancies. He says proton beam therapy has proven especially beneficial for treating tumors of the prostate—the most common cancer in men—near the eye, at the base of the skull and in children in general.

 “The greatest advantage of using proton beam therapy for the patient involves the more challenging cases where the tumor is near critical organs.”

According to Elliot J. Sussman, M.D., LVHHN’s president and CEO, proton beam therapy would be the latest of many leading-edge cancer technologies and treatments LVHHN offers to the community.

 “When he founded Lehigh Valley Hospital—Cedar Crest more than 30 years ago, Leonard Parker Pool’s vision was a medical facility that would allow our community and its families to get the best care right here at home without having to leave the area,” Dr. Sussman said.  “Proton beam therapy treatment is yet another major step in carrying out Mr. Pool’s vision because it means patients and families can get the best care offered anywhere, right here.”

LVHHN’s cancer services are highly acclaimed by widely recognized cancer authorities, including:

•     U.S. News & World Report’s “America’s Best Hospitals” for cancer care

•     Network Cancer Program accreditation, the highest available from the American College of Surgeons’ Commission on Cancer (CoC)

•     Blue Distinction Center for Complex and Rare Cancers by Highmark Blue Shield

•     Breast Imaging Center of Excellence by the American College of Radiology’s Commission on Quality and Safety and the Commission on Breast Imaging

A 988 bed premier academic community hospital, Lehigh Valley Hospital and Health Network comprises three hospital facilities – two in Allentown and one in Bethlehem, Pa.  Also included in the Network is Lehigh Valley Health Services, providing home health, hospice, pharmaceutical and health management services.  All three Lehigh Valley Hospital and Health Network hospitals are designated national Magnet hospitals for excellence in nursing.  Lehigh Valley Hospital and Health Network is a U.S. News & World Report “best hospital” for thirteen straight years.

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