Seoul Asan Hospital Signs Agreement with Japan’s QST on Carbon Ion Therapy — Aiming for Operation by 2031

(Seoul = News1) Reporter Kim Gyubin — Seoul Asan Hospital has signed an agreement with Japan’s QST (National Institutes for Quantum Science and Technology) Hospital to cooperate in education and clinical research related to carbon ion therapy.

Seoul Asan Hospital announced on the 29th that it had signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on carbon ion therapy with QST Hospital in Chiba Prefecture, Japan, on the 27th (local time). The signing ceremony was attended by Song Si-yeol, head of the Carbon Ion Therapy Project (and director of the Cancer Hospital) at Asan Medical Center, and Hitoshi Ishikawa, director of QST Hospital, along with officials from both institutions.

QST Hospital is the world’s first medical institution to begin carbon ion therapy, starting in 1994. Under this agreement, the two organizations will collaborate in areas such as professional training, patient exchange, and clinical research in carbon ion therapy.

In April, Seoul Asan Hospital signed a contract with the Toshiba ESS–DK Medical Solutions consortium and is pursuing a project to begin operation of its carbon ion therapy system by 2031.

The carbon ion therapy facility will be built on the Asan Hospital campus in Pungnap-dong, Songpa-gu, Seoul, with a total floor area of 40,880 square meters (about 12,388 pyeong). According to the hospital, it will be the largest facility of its kind in Korea, equipped with two rotating gantry treatment systems and one fixed-beam treatment system. It will also incorporate a CT-based image-guided system to monitor real-time changes in tumor size and position, allowing for precise, personalized treatment.

The carbon ion therapy system will be used to treat prostate, pancreatic, and liver cancers, as well as lung cancer, sarcomas, and recurrent cancers that show resistance to conventional treatments. In addition to carbon ions, other particles such as helium, neon, and oxygen ions can be used to minimize damage to healthy tissues while effectively targeting resistant tumors.

Song Si-yeol, head of the Carbon Ion Therapy Project at Asan Medical Center, stated, “The experience of QST Hospital, which was the first in the world to introduce carbon ion therapy in clinical practice, will be of great help to Asan Hospital. We will continue to expand treatment opportunities for patients with intractable cancers and strive to create a patient-centered treatment environment.”

rnkim@news1.kr