Westdeutsches Protonentherapiezentrum Essen (WPE)

The West German Proton Therapy Centre in Essen (WPE) is one of the leading institutions for proton radiotherapy in Germany and one of the most advanced proton therapy centres in the world. Here, a team of specialists: doctors, radiographers and medical physicists, work together to treat patients with sensitive or deeply located tumours that are either difficult or impossible to operate on. WPE is equipped with a 230 MeV cyclotron constructed and operated by IBA. WPE hosts 4 treatment rooms with 5 beam lines: 3 operating 360° gantries and one room with an eyeline and one horizontal nozzle. Each of the gantries weighs 120 tons, providing for excellent beam application accuracy of 0,25 degree. Taking advantage of the pencil beam scanning (PBS) modality, full, robust intensity modulation proton therapy (IMPT) is routinely delivered in head and neck (including nodal irradiation), base of skull and prostate patients. Also full craniospinal treatments (CSI) are routinely performed at WPE using PBS modality and IMPT planning. IMPT is employed to deliver SIB (simultaneous integrated boost) proton treatments in base of skull, H&N and prostate at WPE. The treatment of children is a particular focus of the WPE, which houses the largest program in Europe for the treatment of childhood tumours. The treatment of children younger than 6 years in sedation is routinely performed. The WPE is a subsidiary of the University Hospital Essen and works closely with neighboring hospitals and institutes. For many years, oncology is the main field in the clinical, research and education departments at the University Hospital Essen. Therefore, the WPE is embedded in one of the largest oncological centre in Germany – the so-called West German Cancer Centre (WTZ) – and benefits from the expertise of all oncology disciplines.