Posted by Jim Tuggey on February 27th, 2010 — Posted in General
In my prior blog post (Feb. 13, 2010) I answered the question “Where can you find out about Proton Therapy?” because so many Prostate cancer diagnosed patients never hear of it.
Since some of you may not visit the home page of my web site, here is important information from that page:
“Dr. James Slater MD had the vision and was the impetus for starting Proton treatment in a University environment at Loma Linda, Ca. and he recognized that Protons [with an "R"] act differently than conventional three dimensional radiation or IMRT (and many other disguises) that use focused Photons (X-Rays) and all other modalities that use X-Rays.”
A very important difference and this June 24th, 2009 blog post includes a video explaining how the proton works. Please look at the information concerning the “Bragg Peak” and how its action relates to Proton treatment and the proton’s accuracy. It takes the right tools to do the job and Loma Linda has the tools and “leading edge” experience with Prostate Cancer, treating over 9,500 men through 2009 for Prostate cancer and over 14,000 for other cancers and benign conditions.
Simply put, X-rays (using Photons with an “H”) cannot be controlled and go through the body while Protons with an “R” can be completely controlled to hit the cancerous target and then drop to zero charge eliminating any out bound damage to other tissue.
Bob Marckini wrote the book “You Can Beat Prostate Cancer And You Don’t Need Surgery to Do It” and it is available at www.protonbob.com, Amazon.com or LuLu Publications.
Go to my home page, read the “Links” and find out how to contact me by email. I usually respond to you in one hour or less.
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Posted by Jim Tuggey on February 13th, 2010 — Posted in General
A recent study publicized recently seems to indicate that learning about Prostate cancer treatment depends on who you visit to provide Prostate Cancer care.
I read, and or talk about Protons every day for at least three hours or more seven days a week to keep up to speed on what’s happening and I find that the kind of treatment may be recommended may depend on what the local hospital can do on site rather than what is available if you know where to look.
THAT IS WHAT THIS WEBSITE IS ALL ABOUT.
I want you to go to www.protonbob.com and read the many testimonies that are there all from actual Proton patients who, like me, want to spread the good news.
A few years ago I wrote a Blog post about the responsibility of Doctors to know all the treatments that work and tell the patient so he or she can make their own decision based on what is right for their situation; so ask them about Protons.
I read recently that the Northern Illinois University Proton site may be in funding trouble and will be delayed. That’s too bad since it is almost located on top of Fermi Labs in West Chicago where the medical value of the Proton was first identified by Dr. Wilson. The laboratory was founded in 1967 as the National Accelerator Laboratory; it was renamed in honor of Enrico Fermi in 1974. The lab’s first director was Robert Rathbun Wilson, who was part of the Manhattan Project.
The picture to the right is Robert R. Wilson Hall located in West Chicago.
Go to my home page read the “Links” and find out how to contact me by E-mail. I usually respond to you in one hour or less.
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Posted by Jim Tuggey on January 24th, 2010 — Posted in Patient Testimonies
I have never been satisfied that anything works better for Prostate cancers that are not metastatic (and if localized) than Protons.
So I asked my friend Jerry Klein, master of photography, and who has a Ph.D. in Chemistry, who was treated for Prostate cancer in 2000 at Loma Linda what he had to say. The following are his observations:
“I find the IMRT thing a scam. It is X-Ray treatment and they have renamed and repackaged it make it sound new and dodge the reputation of X-Ray treatment. Proton treatment of the prostate dissipates 70% of the radiation in the gland and targeted margins, a much higher percentage than X-Rays or any other neutral radiation. This is enormously significant because safety limits the amount of radiation that our bodies can tolerate.
The sad tale of neutron radiation treatment at Stanford University attests to dangers of too high dosages…neutral radiation is not special! And don’t let anyone scam you into believing that the treatments you are considering have anything like the low side effects of protons or higher or even comparable cure rates.
I have never encountered any proton patients with stories comparable to those that I get from those who had these other treatments.
The side effects are terrible and affect quality of life forever. When I was being treated patients were there for salvage after failed surgery, cryo, etc. They all wished they had chosen protons. If you have metastatic disease none of the treatments that you mention will provide a cure…yes, there are therapies that have promise, but none that I know of that really stop the disease. And if the disease is localized cures are almost certainly 100%. It would be nice if a test that absolutely determines whether the disease is localized exists, but so far as I know there is none.
The scams all have their origin in the enormous profits that are on the table. So many urologists continue to call proton therapy experimental, unproven, dangerous…so sad, so unprofessional, so common and flat out unethical.
-Jerry Klein (Ph. D., Chemistry)”
Back to statements I have made in the past, it is the responsibility of Urologists and other Doctors to know all viable treatments that are available so the patient can make his own decision on the right treatment for him.
On the 27th of January 2010 I will complete 10 years and five months of success due to the professional experts at Loma Linda University and Medical Center and my fine Doctor Carl Rossi – without any side effects!
Go to my home page and find out how to contact me on E-mail. I usually respond to you in one hour or less.
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Posted by Jim Tuggey on December 31st, 2009 — Posted in General
The “Dedication” of the Roberts Proton Therapy Center in Philadelphia, PA., was held on November 23, 2009 and the staff expects to begin Patient Treatment by mid-winter.
To learn more about this Center you can read the latest news here.
“U Penn has partnerships with the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and the U.S. Department of Defense will allow pediatric cancer patients and U.S. military service members and their families to be treated at the Center”.
Let’s talk seriously about living to 85 years old and having an active life. About 1995 my wife received an autographed copy of “New Passages” by Gail Sheehy when we attended a talk by the author. She decried the parameter for middle age, stating that “adulthood, beginning at 21 and ending at 65″ was out of date. Her overview expects women and men to exceed the end of active life at 65 and go on to 90 or better.
So, if you are going to do what she envisions, let’s get after the cancer issue and use the Proton as a way to conquer this dreaded disease and expand your lifetime horizons.
I will be 80 in February 2010 and with a prostate cancer free life, so I’m already meeting some of Ms. Sheehy’s expectations.
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Posted by Jim Tuggey on December 15th, 2009 — Posted in General
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays
It’s great to see that Proton treatment for Prostate cancer is moving right along at the National Cancer Center (NCC) in Seoul, South Korea. We’ll add their information to our Links page. For your information, they also offer Tomotherapy, IMRT, and 3D Brachytherapy. Access to treatment at the NCC is immediate (no waiting).
As you know by now, my experience is only with Protons, where the X-ray is not used and the side effects are reduced. The main reason is that the X-ray is unstoppable and goes all the way through the body with some resultant tissue damage to adjacent tissue and/or tissue in the path. IMRT and Tomotherapy use the X-ray as the radiation vehicle. Brachytherapy uses radioactive seeds which have very short range radiation. Brachytherapy is often used in combination with X-rays, such as RCOG in Georgia.
Today, I’ve gone 10 years and 3 months since treatment without side effects – and on Jan 29th I celebrate 56 years of marriage. Loma Linda helped me see two new granddaughters. My physical in November 2009 was PSA 0.1 as it has been for over six of the past ten years.
My response time for questions about the Proton is normally less than 24 hours.
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Posted by Jim Tuggey on October 8th, 2009 — Posted in General
We need to emphasize that the current health care debate seems to ignore the fact that medicine is moving in the direction of focusing on older, more active people.
When new medical techniques are coupled with the “Nano-Technolgy” that is already underway, they guarantee a population that will live longer and healthier and be productive far beyond all current thinking.
It is a fact that yesterday’s retirement age has been projected at least twenty or more years longer than our own parents would ever believe. I’ve read studies that predict life spans out to 110 years old.
We need to get Proton Therapy recognized and implemented and through the IRON gates erected by the current medical profession. I detest the thought that if we don’t have it, then it must be worthless, an attitude demonstrated continually by some members of the medical profession. The Urologist who told one of my friends that the Proton was “Witchcraft” needs to be called to the carpet.
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Posted by Jim Tuggey on October 1st, 2009 — Posted in General
There was a short clip in the Wall Street Journal in the past week wherein Mr. Newt Gingrich told about a desperate couple who found a new cure for their son’s disease. He said it was the Proton and then called it “Unproven”.
As of today that are about 60,000 people worldwide who could disagree but, since I don’t speak for them I can only state that I disagree and the People who have been treated with “Protons” at Loma Linda University and Medical Center’ Proton Center (LLUMC) alone, now number over 14,000.
The Proton is proven in my case and in the case of many other men and at least one woman I have spoken to who was cured of “Lung cancer” after three major medical centers had told her she had ninety days left on this earth. She told me that the last stop was at the Mayo Clinic where the Doctor there agreed that she had ninety days however, told her to check out LLUMC where they had a new system for treatment. She did and when she talked to me she said that was over five years ago.
So, I must assume that Mr. Gingrich asked about Protons and must have run into a Doctor who was selling something else. I remember one man who was successfully treated with Protons despite the fact that his Urologist called it “Witchcraft”.
More Proton centers in Tennessee, New Hampshire, and the United Kingdom are in the works. For your info, they have a low-energy proton center at the Clatterbridge Hospital that is limited as to the types of cancer they can treat.
Read “The Edge of Medicine” – you can order it at most booksellers and it starts with the Proton Center about to open in Philadelphia and goes on to the miracles of “Nano-technology” that are coming.
I am happy; I HAVE NO SIDE EFFECTS OVER ten years since treatment with Protons at LLUMC.
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Posted by Jim Tuggey on August 26th, 2009 — Posted in General
THIS IS MY ANIVERSARY – TEN YEARS SINCE PROTON
TREATMENT FOR PROSTATE CANCER
These are the facts:
- Completed Proton Treatment for Prostate cancer on August 27, 1999.
- For the last six years my PSA has stabilized at 0.1.
- I’ve been here for the birth of two new Granddaughters.
- My Doctor, who is a General Practitioner, handles my PSA at annual physicals, and I have never had to return to my Urologist who diagnosed my Prostate Cancer.
- I’ll be 80 years old in February 2010 and spend my spare time telling other men and women about Protons.
In the meantime, Proton skills and equipment have improved; new Proton Centers have been established in Houston, TX. Bloomington, Indiana. Jacksonville, Florida, and Mass General Hospital, on MA.
Proton centers are opening in Philadelphia, Oklahoma City, South Florida, West Chicago, and Hampton University in Virginia and others.
Cost is discussed often however, do not be dissuaded since all the men I have talked to in the last ten years who had other treatments from Surgery, to Seeds , and many forms of X-Ray radiation from IMRT to Cyber – knife spend a lot of time visiting their Urologist at considerable follow-on costs that I DO NOT HAVE. At this writing Medicare pays.
Just one final thought, we help to insure that advances in treatment are not “Stymied” and the Basic Research Money continues to flow.
I am happy, I HAVE NO SIDE EFFECTS ten years since treatment. Want to discuss? e-mail me at jjtug@msn.com and read the “Links” on my web site.
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Posted by Jim Tuggey on August 4th, 2009 — Posted in General
At least one web site marks up Protons as an older technology and does not seem to understand that this wonderful option has continuously evolved into the powerhouse treatment that it is today. (I think they are the ones behind the times and fear the Protons impact on medicine.) These detractors cite “current studies” that portray the Proton in ways that are actually just the opposite of the real impact of this wonderful treatment.
This is the month that I reach 10 years since treatment that ended on August 27, 2009. I have had no further visits to my Urologist regarding Protons and I DO NOT HAVE SIDE EFFECTS!
Talk to a PROTON EXPERT, at Loma Linda, CA; MD Anderson, Houston, TX; Proton Institute in Jacksonville, Fla. The new Procure Center in Oklahoma City the just opened in May 2009. Ultimately, you have to make the decision regarding your treatment.
These detractors sell what they have to sell recommend surgery including “Robotic” and radiation oncologists seeds (Brachytherapy) or traditional radiation with all of its new names. The problem is that almost all radiation treatments use X-Rays up to and including “Cyberknife”.
Today’s Protons on the other hand are NOT X-Rays, are extremely accurate, and have the unique capability of being more precisely controlled for application to many cancers or benign tumors.
Worldwide over 50,000 people have been so treated with Protons for many cancerous and benign tumors.
Read “The Edge of Medicine”, Proton therapy is on that edge and meets or betters any other treatment.
I am not a Doctor, only a happy former patient, I HAVE NO SIDE EFFECTS! Seems like a no-brainer when you have a non-invasive treatment that works.
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Posted by Jim Tuggey on June 24th, 2009 — Posted in General, Video
I am pleased to announce that we now have Videos on the web site that show you exactly how Protons work. The distinction is that all radiation treatments use X-Rays up to and including “Cyberknife”. They are unstoppable and pass all the way through the body and given the fact that the X-Rays must be strong enough to kill the cancer, there will be damage to adjacent tissue in the process of using X-rays.
These videos will show you that Protons, that are not X-Rays, are extremely accurate, and have the unique capability of being more precisely controlled for application to the cancer or benign tumor being treated. Watch the videos and you will begin to understand the significance of this precise control of the Proton in treating your cancer and the lack of collateral damage. Here are links to the videos:
1. Introduction to Loma Linda & Proton Therapy
2. The Advantages of Proton Therapy
3. What is Proton Therapy?
4. How Does Proton Therapy Work?
In the meantime I will complete nine years and 10 months since my treatment with Protons in 1999, my PSA stays at 0.1 without side effects and the Proton process gets better each day. The following picture shows the new Robotic Positioning arm for the patients, this will accelerate the number of patients that can be treated each day for Prostate cancers.
This NEW device will be the carrier for you to the painless Proton treatment that I had in 1999:
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