HEALTH

Proton therapy holds promise as best new treatment option for childhood cancers

McKella Sylvester
Editorial Intern
Ben Lepisto poses next to a state chopper on his way to Disney World. The Mercer County Sunshine Foundation uses donations to take young patients to Disney World every year.

Ask a pediatric oncologist what are some treatment options used to treat childhood cancer and they would talk about chemotherapy and surgery. However, the doctors at ProCure Proton Therapy Center at Somerset have utilized a new way to turn Ben Lepisto’s life around.

Lepisto is going into his junior year on time at Woodbridge High School in September. He is an exceptional student and an active player on his local baseball team. But last year, the then 15-year-old began to experience blurring eyesight and fatigue. After blood tests and a biopsy, he was diagnosed with medulloblastoma, a fast-growing, high grade tumor that is always located in the cerebellum, the part of the brain the regulates muscular coordination.

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“Medulloblastoma is the most common malignant brain tumor of childhood, and it accounts for about 20 percent of all childhood brain tumors,” said radiation oncologist Dr. Brian Chon, MD. Chon is part of the Princeton Radiation Oncology, the treatment group for ProCure and is the medical director of the ProCure Proton Therapy Center. “It tends to spread to other parts of the brain and spinal cord, and rarely spreads outside those regions – which makes Ben’s case quite unique.”

It was at the Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, where Chon completed his residency, learned more about proton therapy. “I gained extensive experience delivering proton therapy, which I brought to my role at ProCure.”

Proton therapy is a different way to treat childhood cancer. Unlike standard X-ray radiation, proton therapy utilizes sub-atomic particles, protons, to target tumors with laser-like precision. “Protons are able to deposit much of their energy directly into the tumor and then stop – there is no exit dose. Standard X-ray radiation from the moment is penetrates your skin, all the way through to the other side of the tumour. As a result the potential for damage to healthy tissue and organs is higher,” says Chon.

This treatment option is especially important for the fight against childhood cancers since young patient’s bodies are still developing and maturing. Chon added, “More and more medical literature is emerging, indicating that using proton therapy is likely to reduce the risk of radiation-induced cancers.” According to the Red Journal: Official Journal for the American Society for Radiation Oncology, “The incidence of secondary cancers is much higher in children, so that doubling it may not be acceptable,” when comparing the effectiveness of radiation therapy to proton therapy in young cancer patients. “Children are more sensitive to radiation-induced cancer than are adults.” Chon also said that proton therapy has more tolerable and less severe side effects, both short-term and long-term, than X-ray radiation.

The brain tumor had been removed surgically, but what was unique about Lepisto’s case was that his medulloblastoma has spread to his lymph nodes, when it usually tends to afflict only the nervous system.

Historically, medulloblastoma has led to grave outcomes in children and teens. However, with improvements in medical technology and the addition of proton therapy, oncologists like Chon have seen better outcomes for patients like Lepisto. “We’re lucky to have been able to treat Ben with proton therapy and help pave a path forward for him to a healthy, happy and normal future.”

“After my first visit where they told me that word – “cancer” – I told them with confidence that I will be done in six months… and I was,” said Lepisto, who began treatment last fall. During this time, he also received additional support from his community and the volunteers at the Sunshine Foundation.

“The community created a group called “Barron’s for Ben” that was dedicated to supporting me through my cancer journey, and to this day we are still 11,000 members strong,” Lepisto said. “The Barron’s are a second family to me, and they had many fundraisers for me held in the community.”

Lepisto was supported by the Mercer County Chapter of the Sunshine Foundation and took part in the foundation’s Operation Dreamlift event this May The Sunshine Foundation is a 501C3 nonprofit organization that’s mission is to grant wishes to ill children up to age 18 and provide support for them and their families.

“As part of our program, children attend our Operation Dreamlift event, which brings them to Disneyworld for the day,” said president of the Mercer County Chapter of the Sunshine Foundation Catherine DiCostanzo. DiConstanzo has been part of the foundation since 1991 and states how it “makes life a bit easier for both pediatric cancer patients and other children with chronic and debilitating illnesses.”

Proton therapy has proven to be successful solution for treating localized cancer such as Lepisto’s. Although it’s not an entirely new treatment option (the FDA approved the procedure in 1988), it is becoming more widely used. “Over the last few years, the number of centers around the nation has exploded, with some major medical centers, such as the Mayo Clinic, Miami Cancer Institute, and the University of Maryland, adopting proton therapy technology. St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, the leading children’s hospital pioneering research and treatment for kids with cancer and other life-threatening diseases, opened a proton therapy center in late 2015 – reflecting how well-regarded proton therapy is for treating childhood cancers,” Chon said.

ProCure NJ is the first proton treatment center in the tri-state area and has treated more than 2,500 patients like Lepisto, since March 2012. “ProCure is dedicated to making proton therapy accessible to everyone who needs it, wherever they are located,” Chon said.

Today, Lepisto is cancer-free and looking ahead to the upcoming school year.

“There is a long, long, long list of things I'm looking forward to,” he said. “But to keep it short: definitely playing baseball and soccer for my school teams. I would also love to get back into playing football, basketball, and even sailing. I’d also like to do more active things like paintball, but I'm very much into movies, video games, and watching TV shows as well!”

Visit www.procure.com/New-Jersey-Explore.