High-precision fight against cancer

At the Paul Scherrer Institute PSI in Villigen, Canton Aargau, the first cancer patient in the world was treated using a new radiation process in 1996: the spot scanning technique for proton radiation as it is known. With this technique, a narrow proton ray precisely scans and destroys internal tumours. What is different: the ray is only effective at the site of the tumour inside the body; healthy tissues in front of and behind it remain unaffected. Developed by PSI researchers, this method was a breakthrough in radiation therapy at that time and became a rapid success: today, spot scanning is the standard procedure in proton therapy, used around the world in dozens of specialised centres. Over 1,200 cancer patients have received routine treatment at the PSI proton therapy centre.