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Excitement is building at Mayo Clinic and in Rochester as Mayo takes its next big step on its journey to evolve and improve cancer treatment. The treatment is called Proton Beam Therapy and it offers doctors the opportunity to target tumors with minimal or no damage to surrounding healthy tissue. The Richard O. Jacobsen building that is under construction near Methodist Hospital will house the Proton Beam Therapy facility. The building is unique in many ways. The 24,000 yards of concrete that will be poured within a six month time frame is the largest cement project in Rochester history. It is also the largest in the shortest amount of time for Knutson Construction.

“It is great to work on something as big as this, the future of medicine and what it will do for people,” said Derek O’Connor, Senior Project Manager for Knutson Construction. “The amount of concrete and rebar is just awesome.”

The 2,340 tons of steel used to build the building will take approximately 100 semi-trailers to deliver. The building will be the equivalent of two stories below ground with footings 35 to 40 feet deep, according to Karl Corrigan, the Head of Facilities and Services for Mayo Clinic. The concrete walls will be eight feet thick in some areas. The facility will employ 130 people and will be able to treat 1,240 patients per year when fully operational. A duplicate facility in Arizona will be able to treat the same number of patients.

The first patient will be treated mid-2015, and the facility is planned to be fully operational by mid 2016. An additional bonus is the 500 construction jobs it will add to the Rochester economy.

The building will be named for Jacobson. His $100 million dollar gift is the largest gift in Mayo Clinic’s history from a living person. Jacobsen is an entrepreneur and leading Philanthropist in Iowa. He founded one of the largest privately owned warehouse companies in the country. In a statement on the Mayo Clinic website, Mayo Clinic president and CEO, John Noseworthy, M.D. said, “It was a profound demonstration of trust by Jacobsen.”

Current radiation treatment uses a scattered beam approach to treatment. This treatment passes radiation through the tumor and damages healthy tissue around the tumor. Proton Beam Therapy has been called the next generation of treatment. It is safer and has fewer side effects. The pencil beam moves back and forth on the tumor. It is much cleaner, efficient and a more precise delivery of protons. The focus of the treatment is directly on the tumor.

“Radiation Therapy is linear acceleration and the beam passes all the way through the patient, said Chris Brent, Administrator for the Department of Radiation Oncology. “The new Proton Beam Therapy can be controlled. It can be set to stop at a certain depth. It is safer treatment and gives the patient a better quality of life.”

The new treatment center will benefit pediatric patients most, but both adults and children will benefit. “You can reduce radiation to surrounding tissue,” Brent said. “This is better for the patient’s quality of life.”

The treatment is a short five to 15 minutes. The beam will be delivered by the latest technologically advanced equipment weighing in at approximately 200 tons. The particle accelerator will propel protons to two-thirds of the speed of light. The patient has to be in the same position for the entire treatment so they will be anestisized for the treatment. Any cancer that needs a more precise treatment can be treated with the Proton Beam Therapy. Some breast cancers and prostate cancers have been treated successfully with this therapy.

“The facility will be very friendly to the patient,” Brent said. There is still a significant need for more Proton Beam Therapy facilities even after Mayo Clinic is fully operational.

Over 130,000 patients per year would benefit from this treatment according to Brent. Mayo Clinic is committed to preserving the normal organ function and optimizing the patient’s quality and length of life according to Robert Foote, M.D., Chair of Mayo Clinic’s Department of Radiation Oncology. Proton Beam Therapy is a giant step in that direction. The department has been studying Proton Beam Therapy for six years. They have visited facilities in the United States, Japan and Germany.

“My experience is they believe in it whole heartedly and want it available to as many patients as possible,” said Brent. “We’ve been welcome to what they have done correctly and what they would change.” Brent added, “We don’t expect it to replace the x-ray therapy of today. There is still a place for that treatment. This will provide another tool to choose the best weapon to fight cancer.”