Globally there is insufficient access to radiotherapy. The Lancet Commission estimated that ensuring worldwide access to radiotherapy would save approximately 1 million lives each year. [3]

Most people think of surgery or chemotherapy when they think of cancer treatment, but radiotherapy – using beams of radiation to target and destroy cancer cells – is the second most effective cancer cure we have after surgery.

It is needed by 1 in 2 cancer patients and is instrumental in 40% of cures. It is also the most cost-effective cancer treatment available. [4]

Although highly effective, radiotherapy can expose surrounding healthy tissue to radiation, which can cause harmful and long-lasting side-effects, and thereby limit how high a treatment dose can safely be delivered.

Modern radiotherapy aims for better anatomical precision and reduction of normal tissue irradiation.

Proton and ion beam therapies are two main forms of particle therapy that work differently from conventional X-ray radiotherapy.

These heavier particles deposit their energy precisely at the tumour site, then stop – sparing surrounding healthy tissues.

This makes them particularly beneficial for tumours near sensitive organs, e.g. in children, or for cancers that are harder to treat.

Particle therapy can deliver more personalised and effective treatment than conventional X-ray radiotherapy in some cases, but access is limited and we still have much to learn about the potential biological advantages of these treatments.

Proton therapy is already available on the NHS at The Christie in Manchester and at University College London Hospital.

The properties of the proton and ion beams created using the LhARA laser-hybrid technique have the potential to create new treatment paradigms, reduce the size of a particle-beam therapy facility, and enable advanced automation to reduce treatment time and increase throughput.

LhARA is an international collaboration that brings together physicists, radiobiologists, oncologists, patients, and clinicians to revolutionise cancer treatment.

Through a multidisciplinary research programme and partnerships with industry, LhARA will develop a laser-driven system to produce a range of particles across a range of energies and dose distributions.

This system will enable research into the biological effects of protons and ions on DNA damage, inflammation, and immune response.

For the first time, this research will allow optimised treatment for the individual biology of different tumours.

Advances can then be translated into accessible technology for clinical particle therapy delivery, benefiting cancer patients worldwide.