2024: A Year of Milestones at the New York Proton Center
With a new year underway, we at the New York Proton Center are reflecting on 2024 as a year of extraordinary growth, innovation, and unwavering dedication to patient care. The year marked two significant milestones in our journey: our 5th anniversary and the treatment of our 5,000th patient – achievements that cement our position as one of the fastest-growing and busiest proton centers in the world. Our mission to deliver the gold-standard in proton therapy care remains at the heart of everything we do, and 2024 was a testament to that commitment.
Expanding Our Team and Research
This year, we were thrilled to welcome Dr. Irini Yacoub to our in-house physician team. Dr. Yacoub joins us following a fellowship at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and brings a wealth of expertise in treating head and neck and prostate cancers, further enhancing our ability to provide top-tier, specialized care to patients.
Research and innovation have always been at the core of our work, and in 2024, our impactful research and scientific publications continued to pave the way for the future of radiation oncology. With our three hospital partners, we continue our groundbreaking research on FLASH therapy, which has the potential to deliver an entire multi-week course of radiation treatment in just seconds while further reducing side effects. We also expanded opportunities for patients to participate in research, with the addition of several new clinical trials, including a novel investigator-initiated trial on physical activity during lung cancer treatment, an NRG Oncology phase III randomized trial assessing stereotactic body radiation therapy for locally advanced non-small cell lung cancer for which Dr. Charles Simone (NYPC Chief Medical Officer) is the national Principal Investigator (NRG LU008), and a Proton Collaborative Group phase III randomized trial comparing conventional and hypofractionated comprehensive nodal irradiation for which Dr. Isabelle Choi (NYPC Director of Research and Clinical Director) is the national Principal Investigator (PCG BRE009, COMPRO). We are proud to report that over 90% of our patients took part in one or more of the over two dozen clinical trials open at NYPC in 2024.
In November, NYPC had the privilege of hosting the Particle Therapy Cooperative Group-North America (PTCOG-NA) annual meeting, welcoming leaders in proton therapy from across the globe. During the year, we continued to serve as a center for learning with radiation oncology residents visiting from throughout the United States and around the world to gain insights from our team. NYPC continued to be the world leader in proton training, educating physicians, physicists, dosimetrists, and administrators from numerous centers across the globe in our proton training schools, observerships, and hands-on training program.
In addition to PTCOG-NA, NYPC physicians, medical physicists and dosimetrists presented their impactful research at national and international conferences, including the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO), American Association of Physicists in Medicine (AAPM), Radiosurgery Society (RSS), Particle Therapy Cooperative Group (PTCOG), the National Association for Proton Therapy (NAPT), the World Forum on Particle Therapy, the American College of Radiation Oncology (ACRO), the American Radium Society (ARS), and the Reirradiation Collaborative Group (ReCOG), among many others.
Treating the Most Complex Case Mix
NYPC takes pride in our ability to treat patients who have very complex cancers. Thirty percent (30%) of our patients are treated for head and neck cancers, compared to 14% at proton centers nationally. In addition, 42% of our patients came to us for treatment of recurrent cancers, compared to 11% at other proton centers nationally. Our reach continues to extend across and beyond New York, with 25% of our patients traveling from outside the state to receive care— including many international patients.
Partnering With our Community
We strengthened our connection with the community by sponsoring and organizing teams for high impact community events, including the ZERO Prostate Cancer Run/Walk, Making Strides Against Breast Cancer, and the American Brain Tumor Association BT5K. We also continued our partnership with BR+A Consulting Engineers and their BR+A Charitable Foundation in support of our Forward Together program. The foundation’s annual golf tournament raised $50,000 to support our patients with non-clinical needs during treatment.
Looking Ahead
As we celebrate these 2024 milestones and achievements, we remain focused on the future. To everyone who has been part of our journey—patients, families, staff, and community partners—we extend our deepest gratitude. Here’s to another year of hope, progress, and healing in 2025!