October 06, 2025

In September 2025, Sumitomo Heavy Industries, Ltd. (Head Office: Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo; President: Shinji Shimomura) announced a technical collaboration with Leo Cancer Care of the United States, a company providing innovative cancer treatment solutions, regarding an upright proton therapy system. In addition to our existing proton therapy system utilizing a rotating gantry (*1), we aim to realize a new proton therapy system by combining our superconducting cyclotron with Leo’s upright positioning system.

【Upright Proton Therapy System】
The upright proton therapy system allows treatment while the patient is in a standing or seated position. Compared to conventional systems, it is expected to significantly reduce installation space and cost. Furthermore, it offers improved patient comfort, enhanced patient positioning accuracy (*2), and enables the introduction of proton arc therapy (*3).

【Comment from Stephen Towe, CEO of Leo Cancer Care】
“This partnership with Sumitomo Heavy Industries is about more than technology, it’s about patients, for us it always is. By combining our upright solution with Sumitomo Heavy Industries’ compact cyclotron, we’re taking a major step toward making proton therapy accessible to the many people who could benefit from it.”

【Comment from Toshikazu Hitoshi, General Manager, Industrial Equipment Division, Sumitomo Heavy Industries】
“Through our technical collaboration with Leo Cancer Care, we aim to realize an option enabling proton therapy in an upright position, in addition to our standard proton therapy system utilizing a rotating gantry. Achieving this will make proton therapy more accessible and patient-friendly, fulfilling our mission to enhance the quality and quantity of cancer treatment through medical accelerators.”

(*1) A large structure that rotates around the patient, allowing proton beams to be delivered from various angles for optimal tumor targeting.
(*2) The ability to precisely align the patient’s body in the correct position for treatment, which is critical for effective and safe cancer therapy.
(*3) A method of delivering proton beams while continuously rotating the gantry or treatment couch, allowing for more concentrated dose delivery to tumors compared to traditional multi-angle irradiation.