Therapeutic or Preventive Procedure
proton therapy
pro·ton ther·a·py
Subclass of:
Heavy Ion Radiotherapy
Definitions related to proton therapy:
  • The use of an external beam of PROTONS as radiotherapy.
    NLM Medical Subject Headings
    U.S. National Library of Medicine, 2021
  • (proton beam radiation therapy) A type of external beam radiation therapy using a beam of protons. It has the advantage of precisely localizing the radiation dose on the targeted tissue and avoiding damage to the healthy surrounding tissues.
    NCI Thesaurus
    U.S. National Cancer Institute, 2021
  • (proton beam radiation therapy) A type of radiation therapy that uses streams of protons (tiny particles with a positive charge) that come from a special machine. This type of radiation kills tumor cells but does not damage nearby tissues. It is used to treat cancers in the head and neck and in organs such as the brain, eye, lung, spine, and prostate. Proton beam radiation is different from x-ray radiation.
    NCI Dictionary of Cancer Terms
    U.S. National Cancer Institute, 2021
  • Proton therapy is a type of radiation therapy - a treatment that uses high-energy beams to treat tumors. Radiation therapy using X-rays has long been used to treat cancers and noncancerous (benign) tumors. Proton therapy is a newer type of radiation therapy that uses energy from positively charged particles called protons.
    Mayo Clinic
    Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research
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