Like photon radiation therapy (conventional radiotherapy), proton therapy is most commonly used as part of an interdisciplinary treatment protocol that includes surgery and chemotherapy. For example, in sarcomas, proton therapy is used before surgery (neoadjuvant therapy), especially for large tumors in order to shrink them, and after surgery (adjuvant therapy) to destroy the remaining tumor cells in the body.
In some cases, it is possible to irradiate the tumor once (radiosurgery) instead of surgery. For example, it is useful in the case of the operation cannot be performed due to contraindications or the hard-to-reach location of the tumor.
Since proton therapy has few side effects, it is often given at the same time as chemotherapy. This possibility exists in this proton center as well. Patients receive chemotherapy at the Cancer Center of the Essen University Hospital, which also includes WPE