Update: Video of ground breaking ceremony can be found at the bottom of this post.
Journalists: For links to video and audio files, see the bottom of this post.
Mayo Clinic will take another step toward a new era in radiation treatment when it breaks ground tomorrow on the Richard O. Jacobson Building, located at the northwest corner of First Avenue Northwest and Second Street Northwest. The building is named after longtime Mayo patient and philanthropist Richard O. Jacobson who provided $100 million — the largest lifetime gift from an individual donor — to help establish the Mayo Clinic Proton Beam Therapy Program. Mayo Clinic will break ground on a second location for its Proton Beam Therapy Program in Phoenix in December.
Proton beam therapy is a more targeted and precise way of administering radiation therapy. It allows delivery of higher doses of radiation to malignant and benign tumors, while simultaneously minimizing the damage to surrounding healthy tissue and organs. The goal is to most precisely target protons to ensure they only treat cancerous tumors and spare healthy tissue and organs, maximizing the ability to cure more cancers and help people live longer.
Media members: click here for more details on the ground breaking event.
To view more facts about the proton beam program, click here.
Click here to view an exterior rendering of the facility
Click here to go to the Proton Beam Therapy Program web page
Journalists: The following video and audio clips with Dr. Foote as well as an animation of proton beam therapy are available for download and use in your stories.
How proton beam therapy works: MOV MP3
What cancers are candidates for proton beam therapy: MOV MP3
Proton beam therapy advantages: MOV MP3
Animation of proton beam: MPEG
Ground Breaking Ceremony: MOV
