Antiproton radiation found biologically effective in terminating cells used in cancer research

Newport Beach, CA November 25, 2003 An international collaboration of scientists, including the BC Cancer Research Centre, has completed what it says is the first-ever antiproton beam experiments designed to reveal the biological effectiveness of antiproton radiation in terminating cells used for cancer research. The collaboration has been announced by Larry Welch, president and CEO of PBar Labs.

PBar Labs assembled the collaboration at CERN (European Organization for Nuclear Research in Geneva) to perform the measurements. The groundbreaking data obtained from the experiments, conducted this summer, are the measured results of living cells exposed to antiprotons. “We are grateful that CERN agreed to host and give support to the experiments.” says Welch. “CERN is the only research facility in the world providing an antiproton beam with the characteristics needed for such experiments.”

“Antiprotons offer the basis for developing a new, non-invasive surgical tool for the treatment of certain tumours,” explains Dr Joe Martin, chief technology officer for PBar Labs. “[This is] because the effective dose from antiprotons would be delivered mostly to the tumour and not to surrounding tissue, unlike conventional opposed-field x-rays that deliver roughly equal radiation doses to the entrance path, tumour, and exit path.”

“We are pleased that the potential of antiproton therapy was sufficiently powerful to attract the top calibre of researchers from international institutions who participated,” states Dr Michael Holzscheiter, VP of scientific collaborations for PBar Labs.

The collaboration included researchers from CERN and University Hospital Geneva in Switzerland, UCLA Medical Center in the US, University of Aarhus and Aarhus University Hospital in Denmark, British Columbia Cancer Research Centre, the University of Maastricht in The Netherlands and PBar Labs.