Still River Systems signs patent license agreement with MIT

MedicalPhysicsWeb

LITTLETON, MASS, 22 June 2011, /PRNewswire/ – Still River Systems, Inc. announces today that it has entered into a long-term licensing agreement with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (M.I.T.) to utilize advanced superconducting accelerator technologies developed at M.I.T.'s Plasma Science and Fusion Center in collaboration with Still River. Still River will employ those technologies in conjunction with its own leading-edge developments in its groundbreaking single-room proton therapy platform, the Monarch250. This unique medical device houses a revolutionary source of high-energy protons based on the world's highest field strength superconducting synchrocyclotron that provides a significant reduction in the size, cost, and complexity of developing and operating a proton therapy center.

The precision of proton therapy makes it an important treatment option for patients with cancer. Protons can be directed to concentrate their energy precisely on the cancerous tumor while sparing the surrounding healthy tissue, resulting in far fewer short and long-term treatment complications. The first Monarch250 is currently under installation at the Siteman Cancer Center at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, MO, a National Cancer Institute (NCI) Comprehensive Cancer Center.

The proton accelerator has been undergoing complete clinical testing and commissioning, including lifetime testing, and all clinical parameters have exceeded performance expectations. "The innovative design of our proton therapy platform, aided by the technology developed with M.I.T., results in a simple and modular system thus enabling quick, efficient, and cost effective installations," states CEO Joseph Jachinowski. "With our first system nearing completion, we are now beginning to reap the benefits of its unique design by finalizing a complete process that can be replicated to meet the growing proton therapy demand in a cost-efficient manner."

Still River Systems will be exhibiting at the Annual Meeting of the American Association of Physicists in Medicine (AAPM) in Vancouver, British Columbia on July 31st through August 3rd.
About Still River Systems

Still River Systems, Inc., based in Littleton, Massachusetts, is dedicated to providing physicians, and their patients, access to high quality, cost-effective proton therapy solutions. Still River Systems is developing the Monarch250, an affordable, precise and compact proton therapy system for cancer treatment.

The Monarch250 has not been cleared by the US Food and Drug Administration for distribution or clinical use. For more information on Still River Systems and the Monarch250 Proton Therapy System, please call 978-540-1500 or visit www.stillriversystems.com
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CPAC Completes Construction of Pre-Commercial Prototype Dielectric Wall Accelerator

3 June 2011
Press Release

Livermore, Calif. – February 7, 2011 – Compact Particle Acceleration Corporation (CPAC) announced today that it has demonstrated proton acceleration at its facility in Livermore, Calif., using its revolutionary compact particle accelerator technology. With achievement of this milestone, CPAC further enables the development of the world’s most precise and compact accelerator for use in proton therapy systems, which has the potential to advance the boundaries of cancer care.

Livermore, Calif. – June 3, 2011 – Compact Particle Acceleration Corporation (CPAC) announced today that it has completed the construction of the first Dielectric Wall Accelerator (DWA) pre-commercial prototype system. With the achievement of this milestone, CPAC has taken another step towards the development of the first commercial DWA. It will be the world’s most precise and compact accelerator for use in proton therapy systems, and has the potential to advance the boundaries of cancer care.

Radiation therapy has been used in the treatment of cancer for many years, but most of the treatments have been done with X-rays, which are successful in destroying many tumors but can also damage healthy tissue around the tumor. In contrast, protons deposit their energy near the end of their path. As a result, the beam energy can be precisely delivered to the tumor volume without seriously harming surrounding tissues or critical organs.

Proton therapy is a particularly compelling treatment for pediatric patients and some hard-to-treat cancers, such as those requiring high doses of radiation or tumors that are close to sensitive structures. But because of the cost and size of proton therapy systems, this type of therapy has been limited to approximately 30 centers around the world. With its pioneering work on developing a compact proton accelerator, CPAC aims to make this treatment accessible to every cancer center.

CPAC’s accelerator is a highly compact system based on the DWA technology developed by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL). The prototype system was built exclusively with commercially available components of the highest quality and reliability and has been in operation for several months at CPAC’s state-of-the-art facility in Livermore, Calif.

“This is a significant step forward toward commercializing the DWA for proton therapy,” said George Caporaso, Ph.D., LLNL’s lead investigator in the collaboration with CPAC. “It’s the first integrated proton accelerator system consisting of all the essential elements working together: a commercial proton source and injector, and a DWA section with a high gradient insulating beam tube, solid dielectric Blumleins, high quality photoconductive switches and a laser and a fiber optic distribution system.”

Dr. Jose Alonso, formerly of Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory conducted an independent assessment of the DWA technology and its potential for future proton therapy applications at the request of the European Society of Therapeutic Radiation and Oncology (ESTRO) and presented his assessment at the recent ESTRO Anniversary Congress in London. “CPAC has assembled a very strong team, that includes LLNL, with expertise in materials science, beam dynamics, induction linacs and systems development,” Dr. Alonso said. “CPAC’s parent corporation has much experience in the medical device field, as well, and understands the issues and efforts required to develop effective systems. CPAC has developed and is embarking on a realistic plan. I believe CPAC will be successful in developing a commercial system. The technical risk is low and their commitment to success is very clear.”

“This prototype system demonstrates the key differentiating advantages of the DWA,” said Anthony Zografos, Ph.D., CPAC’s vice president and general manager. “Our injection system has demonstrated extremely good beam stability and intensity control and our Dielectric Wall Accelerator demonstrates excellent repeatability. We have demonstrated the capability of adjusting and controlling on a shot-to-shot basis beam energy and dose. In the coming months we will also implement a shot-to-shot beam spot size adjustment and control capability.”

According to Zografos, the acceleration gradients that are obtainable with this system are approximately 20 Million electron Volts per meter (MeV/m), which far exceeds accelerating gradients for existing medical accelerator devices. CPAC has filed for patent protection for designs that will allow it to reach 40 MeV/m in the next nine months and in excess of 50 MeV/m in the near future. The company plans to ship a 150 MeV clinical system that will be approximately 4 meters in length in 2013.

About Compact Particle Acceleration Corporation (CPAC)
Compact Particle Acceleration Corporation (CPAC) is an affiliated subsidiary of TomoTherapy Incorporated. It is developing and commercializing a highly compact proton therapy system powered by the dielectric-wall accelerator (DWA), a revolutionary proton accelerator that has a substantially smaller structure and greater flexibility than other systems. This breakthrough in size and power is made possible by three key inventions: a high-gradient insulator that allows for substantial increases in voltage-holding capacity, and optical switches that can control high-power loads at ultra high speeds in a very compact size, both licensed from Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL); and dielectric materials that are embedded with nanoparticles to facilitate the transmission and isolation of extremely high voltages. CPAC believes these platform technologies that combine extreme switching speed and power handling capability will enable the creation of a proton therapy system that accessible to all cancer centers and their patients. For more information, visit www.CPAC.pro.
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