European Particle Therapy Network (EPTN)

The European Particle Therapy Network (EPTN) became a task force of ESTRO in 2017. It was established in 2015 in response to the anticipated increase in the number of particle therapy centres in Europe. In addition, the need to cooperate among centres and integrate particles (i.e. protons and carbons) in the framework of clinical research networks was identified as being of paramount importance. ESTRO, at the time of initiation of the network, was asked to collaborate with EPTN and agreed to facilitate the group.

Particle therapy (PT) is only one part of radiation oncology, and needs to be well aligned with other radiation techniques as well as with general developments in cancer research and patient care. PT offers both new opportunities for providing excellence in cancer care, and for high-quality research within the framework of European  networks.

The 9th EPTN Annual Meeting will take place at the Christie Centre, located in Manchester, UK.

EPTN Annual Meeting 

Time:       08:20 - 15:00 hrs local time, 27th of October. 
Location: The Christie NHS Foundation Trust, Wilmslow Road, 
                 Manchester, M20 4BX.
                 2nd Floor Education Centre (Department 17)
Agenda:   Please access the agenda for the Annual Meeting by clicking here.

Please consult this map for directions within the premises of the Christie Centre. Once in the building, EPTN registrants will need to follow signage to Dept 17 Education Centre School of Oncology, where the Annual Meeting will be held. 

Meetings of EPTN Work Packages and dedicated Workshops will take place the Midland Hotel in Manchester, UK.

Beyond Physical Dose, Organised by Work Packages 1, 2, 5 & 6.  
Time:       10:00 - 18:00 hrs local time, 26th October. 
Location: The Midland, 16 Peter Street, Manchester, M60 2DS - Room: Stanley Suite
Agenda:   Please access the agenda for this workshop by clicking here
 
Adaptive Proton Therapy, Organised by Work Packages 4 & 5. 
Time:       13:00 - 18:00 hrs local time, 26th of October. 
Location: The Midland, 16 Peter Street, Manchester, M60 2DS - Room: Royce Suite
Agenda:   Please access the agenda for this workshop by clicking here.
Registrations are by invitation only. You may not register through the registration form for this workshop.
 
Evidence-Based Proton Therapy, Organised by Work Package 1. 
Time:       13:00 - 18:30 hrs local time, 26th of October. 
Location: The Midland, 16 Peter Street, Manchester, M60 2DS - Room: Lancaster Suite
Agenda:   Please access the agenda for this workshop by clicking here

A lunch will be offered for registered participants of the three workshops between 12:00 and 13:00 at the workshop venue.

A guide-map for the city-centre of Manchester can be found here.

Please note the deadline for registering is the 16th of October.

Travel and Accommodation:

Getting to the Christie Centre: 
The Christie Centre is accessible via public transportation from the city centre by tram, train, and bus.  
For detailed information on arriving at the Christie Centre, please click here
You may also use this tool to help plan your journey.
A map of the Christie Centre with directions to the Education Centre where the Annual Meeting will be held can be found here.

Manchester Airport 

For participants flying into Manchester Airport and coming directly to the Christie Centre, a taxi journey takes about 15 mins, with a fee of approximately £20.

Participants going to Manchester City Centre from Manchester Airport are suggested to take the frequent direct train service to the centre. This ride takes about 20 minutes, with trains running every 10 minutes.  
For more information, please consult this link: https://www.manchesterairport.co.uk/getting-to-and-from/by-train/.

A taxi from Manchester Airport to the centre of Manchester, takes approximately 30 minutes and costs approximately £ 30-40. 

Accommodation: 
For registered participants staying in Manchester for one night or more, the city centre offers the best accessibility between the workshops’ venue, the annual meeting venue, and local transportation hubs. 

Additional information and for booking with the Midland Hotel is available via this link: Hotels in Manchester City Centre | The Midland Hotel

For participants wishing to stay a bit closer to the Christie Centre, please find a list of a few hotel suggestions below. 
https://www.didsburyhouse.co.uk/ 
https://www.waterside-hotel.co.uk/ 
https://www.travelodge.co.uk/hotels/155/Manchester-Didsbury-hotel 

 

For queries regarding this meeting, please contact eptn@estro.org 

EPTN organisers: 

Cai Grau (Aarhus, DK), Damien Weber (Villigen, CH), Dietmar Georg (Vienna, AT) 

The workshops are supported by the STFC Advanced Radiotherapy Network+ (ARN+) [grant number ST/S005382/1]

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The EPTN has three organisers and is composed of 7 working parties (WP) with experts for different topics to further elaborate the particle European discussions. It meets once a year.

EPTN organisers:

  • Cai Grau (Aarhus, DK) 

  • Damien Weber (Villigen, CH) 

  • Dietmar Georg (Vienna, AT)

WP

Title

Coordinators

1

Clinical

Hans Langendijk (Groningen, NL)-Leader

Roberto Orecchia (Milano, IT)

Karin Haustermans (Leuven, BE)

Daniel Zips (Berlin, DE)

Jacques Balosso (Grenoble, FR)

Esther Troost (Dresden, DE)

2

Dose assessment, quality assurance, dummy runs, technology inventory

Oliver Jäkel (Heidelberg, DE)

Sairos Safai (Villigen, CH)

Stefano Lorentini  (Trento, IT)

3

Education 

Morten Høyer (Aarhus, DK)

Marco Schwarz (Seattle, USA)

Rita Simoes (London, UK)

4

Image Guidance in particle therapy

Aswin Hoffmann (Dresden, DE)

Alessandra Bolsi (Villigen, CH)

5

TPS in particle therapy

WP5 Collective PTPS specifications

Christian Richter (Dresden, DE)

Tony Lomax (Villigen, CH)

6

Radiobiology, RBE

Manjit Dosanjh (Geneva, CH)

Bleddyn Jones (Oxford, UK)

Armin Lühr (Dortmund, Germany)

Jörg Pawelke (Dresden, DE)

Martin Pruschy (Zurich, CH)

Brita S. Sørensen (Aarhus, DK)

7

Health Economy

Yolande Lievens (Ghent, BE)

 

  • Eekers DBP et al. Update of the EPTN atlas for CT- and MR-based contouring in Neuro-Oncology. Radiother Oncol 2021; 160: 259-265, 2021 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.radonc.2021.05.013
  • Sørensen BS, et al. Does the uncertainty in relative biological effectiveness affect patient treatment in proton therapy? Radiother Oncol 2021;163:177–84. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.radonc.2021.08.016
  • Heuchel L, et al. Is a variable proton RBE considered in clinical practice? - ESTRO survey among 25 proton centres. Radiother Oncol 161(Suppl.1) (2021) S313-314, DOI: 10.1016/S0167-8140(21)06904-8
  • De Roeck L, et al. The European particle therapy network (EPTN) consensus on the follow-up of adult patients with brain and skull base tumours treated with photon or proton irradiation. Radiother Oncol. 2022 Jan 27:S0167-8140(22)00021-4. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.radonc.2022.01.018

  • Heuchel L, et al. Clinical use and future requirements of relative biological effectiveness: Survey among all European proton therapy centres. Radiother Oncol 2022; 172, P134-139, July 01, 2022
    https://doi.org/10.1016/j.radonc.2022.05.015