From left to right: Takuji Furukawa, President and CEO of B dot Medical, and Shuichi Oda, President of Shonai Create.
*The system in the picture has not been approved by the regulatory authority as of September 6, 2023.
Hyperthermia is a form of cancer therapy that involves externally heating tumors with electromagnetic waves. Human cells are destroyed when they are heated to near 42.5 degrees Celsius. The same effect is also expected to be applicable to destroying cancer cells. Since 1990, hyperthermia has been covered by the national health insurance in Japan. It is believed that sufficient temperature applied over a sufficient duration of time can enhance the effects of chemotherapy or radiation therapy.
B dot Medical, a company advancing the development of an ultra-compact proton therapy system, signed a joint research agreement with Shonai Create, which is in the business of developing and manufacturing high-frequency hyperthermia systems.
Previous clinical trials show promising indications that the combination of high-frequency hyperthermia and proton therapy can increase the relative biological effectiveness (RBE) to a level equivalent to carbon-ion therapy and enhance the treatment effectiveness towards radiation-resistant tumors in some cases. However, conventionally, patients needed to undergo separate treatments with two different devices, posing a limitation to the overall therapeutic effectiveness and efficiency.
Under the agreement, the two companies will work towards developing a hyperthermia system optimized for the proton therapy irradiation workflow, aimed at reducing the burden on clinical staff and patients.
About Shonai Create Industrial Co., Ltd.
B dot Medical is a startup company originating from the National Institute of Radiological Sciences (NIRS). The company has developed an ultra-compact proton therapy system, which is far more compact than conventional proton systems, downsizing to a level comparable to a LINAC system. The new development is expected to contribute to a significant increase in the number of proton therapy facilities by promoting its construction in urban areas where it has been difficult to do so until now, or in hospitals that had previously not considered it due to the cost.
