Harnessing the forces of physics in the fight against cancer

"Physics against cancer" is a book about the origins of proton therapy at the Paul Scherrer Institute PSI.

At the Centre for Proton Therapy CPT, which belongs to the Paul Scherrer Institute PSI, a cancer patient was treated for the first time with the so-called spot scanning technique on 25 November 1996 ­− a worldwide first. This type of radiation, developed at the PSI, the largest Swiss research institute, scans deep-seated tumours with a pencil-thin beam of charged particles. In this way, the cancer cells are killed with pinpoint accuracy, but surrounding healthy tissue is spared. In the meantime, the technique has become established worldwide and continues to spread: According to current estimates, spot-scanning proton therapy will double in size from around 90 treatment centres in 2020 to 2030.

The book "Physics against cancer" tells the remarkable story of the men and women at the Paul Scherrer Institute's Centre for Proton Therapy who, for half a century, had the knowledge, imagination and perseverance to make their ideas a reality. Above all, it shows what close cooperation between doctors and scientists can achieve when all the forces of physics are harnessed in the fight against cancer.