Hospital arms race goes nuclear
The NYtimes details the newest weapon in the fight against cancer– a $100M+ particle accelerator straight out of Star Trek, which appears to have gargantuan impact– but more to hospital bottom lines than cancer patient survival (to date, the evidence appears, well, as theoretical as the focus of this equipment to date).
Some experts say the push reflects the best and worst of the nation’s market-based health care system, which tends to pursue the latest, most expensive treatments — without much evidence of improved health — even as soaring costs add to the nation’s economic burden.
The machines accelerate protons to nearly the speed of light and shoot them into tumors. Scientists say proton beams are more precise than the X-rays now typically used for radiation therapy, meaning fewer side effects from stray radiation and, possibly, a higher cure rate.
