Andrew Lee, Medical Director, Texas Center for Proton Therapy

Texas Center for Proton Therapy Medical Director Andrew K. Lee, M.D., MPH, sat down with Invest: to discuss the latest advancements in proton therapy, and how the center’s dedication to supporting its patients translates to strengthening the greater DFW community.

What is the Texas Center for Proton Therapy’s mission in North Texas?

Texas Center for Proton Therapy is the only proton therapy center in North Texas, and one of only two proton therapy centers in the entire state. Our mission is to elevate the level of cancer care within the Dallas-Fort Worth area and surrounding region. Proton therapy is an advanced form of treatment for radiation therapy that can improve the lives of cancer patients, while preserving their quality of life.

We are part of a larger network in collaboration with Texas Oncology, The US Oncology Network, and supported by McKesson Specialty Health and Baylor Scott & White Health. Structurally we have three proton treatment rooms, and we treat approximately 70 to 80 patients daily. We have a wide spread of different case types and provide a unique form of proton therapy called pencil beam scanning. I was fortunate enough to be part of the team tasked with treating the first-ever recipient of pencil beam scanning in 2008, and this advancement signaled a significant improvement in radiation technology involving the minimization of exposure elsewhere throughout the body.

What have been some recent achievements for the Proton Center?

Our greatest achievement is the total number of patients we’ve treated since the center’s inception, which is approaching 5,000. It is harder to quantify the quality of cancer care our team has elevated in such a short time. 

We treat many pediatric cancer patients and we collaborate with several children’s hospitals in the area to treat patients locally instead of forcing them to commute outside their community for radiation treatment. Allowing a cancer patient to receive high-quality care close to home supports not only the patient, but also supports the patient’s family and friends by allowing their unit to stay together during such a difficult time. Oncology as a field is about making a positive impact on people’s lives, and our center strives to accomplish exactly that, not only through outstanding technology but also through our experience in providing excellent care.

How have technological advancements improved the Center’s level of care?

We’ve recently seen tremendous advancements in the treatment planning software on which pencil beam scanning relies. Our ability to develop a more complicated treatment plan far exceeds what we were able to do even a decade ago, due to improved sophistication of both software and processing power. Our current servers are utilizing multiple graphics processing units, and our ability to track and treat moving tumors has advanced. We also perform imaging with MRI and PET/CTs, and we’re now applying newer tracers within advanced imaging that can help detect disease earlier at various tumor sites. For example, when coupled with a PET scan, prostate-specific membrane antigens allow us to detect the spread of prostate cancer within the body.

What partnerships with other medical institutions assist with your research and with delivering your services to other communities?

From a clinical perspective, we see patients from most health systems in the area and are able to help treat patients from beyond a two-hour drive via telemedicine. We collaborate with all major adult and pediatric hospitals and we try to integrate ourselves into a multidisciplinary framework in which radiation is combined with other services, such as chemotherapy, surgery, or other therapies. 

How are you maintaining a skilled workforce, especially within such a specialized field?

It’s a unique challenge, but I am fortunate enough to work with two radiation oncologists who are both specialized in proton therapy and fellowship-trained with extensive experience. Each level of staff is integral to maintaining a positive and cooperative environment. Our dedication to a high level of customer service applies to both our patients as well as the way we treat our co-workers to keep everyone in our building motivated.

Do you include AI or other advanced technologies to elevate your treatment options or business operations?

From a treatment standpoint, the number of systems in communication is incredibly complicated and has been updated repeatedly over time. When we have to define a tumor target and plan that treatment, these new technologies can save time so we can focus more energy on patient care.

What quality and safety structures do you have in place for the services you provide?

With the complexity of both the cases we treat and that of our treatment plans, we need to ensure that what we’re seeing on the computer is actually translating to what’s touching the patient with a high level of fidelity. There are tremendous quality assurance measures performed before a plan is ever imported into our treatment console, which involves steps such as multiple sets of eyes reviewing each plan and measuring our plans against the actual treatment results, all of which takes place nightly after business hours, and every case is discussed at length in weekly chart rounds.

What support do you provide for patients and their families beyond medical treatment?

Through our practice administrator, we are aligned with hotel and lodging facilities for preferred pricing and we can help connect patients with a framework of options if they are traveling to us for treatment. We are also able to recommend additional treatment resources they may need outside of proton therapy, from mental health support, to travel assistance, to genetic counseling. We’ve historically opened our doors to local support groups for different disease sites and have ensured we’ve prioritized local community outreach and awareness about treatment options.

What are your goals for Texas Center for Proton Therapy over the next two to three years?

We need to continue the high level of consistency exemplified today. Even if staff changes occur, we need to maintain our level of excellence at a high standard. We want to ensure the latest medical information and research are being implemented in our day-to-day practice.

Recent studies have illustrated that there is a meaningful difference in side effects for cancer treatment when it comes to proton therapy versus traditional treatments. We need to get that messaging across to both patients and providers to show proton therapy as a safe and effective treatment option.

We want to keep implementing leading-edge technological advancements when they become available, whether with hardware or software.

What is one piece of information you wish the general public knew about proton therapy?

It’s important to explore all available treatment options even if perhaps a different doctor hasn’t mentioned or doesn’t yet know about proton therapy. Treatment for cancer is determined by many factors, including tumor type, size and location in the body, whether it’s newly diagnosed or a recurrence, the tumor’s specific genetic makeup, and the patient’s overall health. We are motivated to increase the level of quality cancer care in the DFW area and are dedicated to making a positive impact on our community.