Proton therapy in pediatric brain tumors

. . . . , . . , . 3 6 [1]. Proton beam therapy (PBT) was initiated in the particle accelerator located in the physics laboratory. As this modality moves from the research laboratory to hospital-based facilities, there has been a rapid growth in the number of proton medical facilities worldwide. The clinical advantage of proton radiotherapy over photon radiotherapy is the marked reduction in the radiation dose to the normal tissues due to the absence of an exit dose with a proton Bragg peak. Pediatric patients are considered to have the maximum clinical gain with the use of protons because their normal tissues will keep developing and growing with an anticipated long remaining life. In pediatric brain tumors, PBT is used aiming to preserve neurocognitive function as much as possible. In this article, the basic principles and benefits of PBT are introduced with the latest available clinical data on PBT for pediatric brain tumors.