HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Wingham Advance-Times, 1984-03-26, Page 46London clinic first in world to use
The London Clinic of the Ontario Cancer
Foundation was the first treatment centre in
the world to have a commercial cobalt -60
beam therapy unit, the basic machine for
radiotherapy between the 1950s and the late
1970s.
Although the unit was known as the
"cobalt bomb", this Canadian development
constituted one of the first peacetime ap-
plications of atomic energy devoted to the
restoration of health rather than to destruc-
tion.
The unit was installed in the clinic at the
Victoria Hospital- in November 1951. The
cobalt -60 used in the bomb was in the Na-
tional Research Council's reactor at Chalk
River, Ontario. The housing for the unit was
designed and built by Eldorado Mining and
Refining (1944) Ltd. - a Canadian Crown
Corporation. At that time, the Canadian
atomic pile was the only one in the world to
produce sizeable quantities of radioactive
cobalt.
The first patient treated in November 1951
at the London unit with the "cobalt bomb"
received the first of millions of treatment
given since to prolong lives of people in
many countries around the world.
Funds for the new cobalt therapy unit at
London, as for many other devices essential
for modern cancer treatment. were provid-
ed by Federal and matching Provincial
Cancer Control Grants, under a program
administered in Ontario by the Foundation.
Even as the historic cobalt unit went into
operation in Victoria Hospital, the Founda-
tion and the hospital's Board of Directors
were completing plans for an expanded
cancer clinic,
On November 18, 1954, the London Clinic
was opened by Premier Leslie Frost, on two
floors of the newwing of Victoria Hospital.
The clinic was closely allied with the
University of Western Ontario in both
teaching and research. One of -its features
wase 1;--prateViand which Mu
Clinic were made possible by contributions
from the Canadian Cancer Society from the
Foundation's reserve funds for clinic con-
struction, and from government grants. One
addition housed a small cobalt beam
therapy unit while the other housed a
laboratory and recreational therapy area.
By this time, the London Clinic had a Divi-
sion of Nuclear Medicine which carried out
research into the use of isotopes in the
diagnosis and treatment of both benign and
disease. Specialists from the
HOPE Page 15
``cobalt bomb',
- a Therac 6 linear accelerator.
This unit, one of a new generation of ac-
celerators, produces powerful x-ray beams.
Because of its deeper penetration treatment
time with the accelerator was much shorter
than with the. older cobalt units. After the
accelerator passed its clinical trials, it was
treating 35 to40 patients a day:
As did the other Foundation clinics, the
London Clinic entered the 1980s hoping to ex-
pand its facilities so as to handle an ever-
increasing
ver
increasing patient load. In June 1 1, the
clinic's Department of Nuclear Medicine
became a separate department because of
the growing complexity; and diversity of its
investigative procedures. The clinic's -other
components moved into the space vacated
by this department..
malignant Foundation builds
clinic taught at the University of Western Ontario
Ontario and gave course an nuclear
world
in OnNovember 22, 1961, the cornerstone orld re utation battle
was laid
for a new hostel provided by the
Canadian Cancer Society Ontario Division.
The hostel, which opened in 1962, provided
living accommodations for 20. patients, who
came from a distance for treatment at the
clinic. In that same year, the University of
Western Ontario, in recognition of the high
standard of therapy and clinical research of
the London Clinic, established the Depart-
ment of Therapeutic Radiology and ap-
pointed Dr. Ivan Smith, the clinic's director,
as Head with the rank of full Professor.
In 1966, the London Clinic again made
history when it installed a 35 -minion -volt
Brown-Boveri Betatron, the first unit of its
kind in Ontario and one of two in Canada.
The Betatron, which produced high-energy
beta or gamma rays, rapidly became a
leader in high-energy radiotherapy equip-
ment. A second addition to Victoria Hospital
provided more examination rooms, space
for research and for the clinical use of
isotopes.
The costs of cancer treatment and
research were mounting: in 1966 the
Betatron unit cost $260,000 whereas just 12
years before could be purchased for $47,000.
On April 3, 1970, a new wing was added to
the London hostel - Thameswood Lodge.
f the financing for this extensio
__n
in came from bequ�fn
depicted the use of atomic energy
' medicine, a fitting decoration for a clinic
which had broken new ground in the use of
this new form of energy.
In 1958 t new additions to the London
,two
don residents.
• In November 1975, through an agreement
with Atomic Energy of Canada Limited, the
London Clinic acquired the latest form of
Chemotherapy...
• frolic page 14. -
A decrease in the white blood cell will
make the patient more vulnerable to
infections, A decreased number of red cells
can result in anemia and give symptoms of
shortness of breath, weakness and,fatigue.
A decrease in the platelet count can result in
bruising easily, getting a rash of little blood
blisters under the skin or even internal
bleeding.
Effects on hair—Hair follicles are rapidly
growing cells, and temporary hair loss (not
only from the scalp, but also of body hair) is
a common side effect of many
chemotherapeutic agents. . This loss is
occasionally total, but hair does grow back
when the drug therapy is stopped. Wigs and
hairpieces are tax-deductible medical
expenses and may also be covered by
medical insurance.
Effects on fertility—Women who are still
menstruating may have irregular periods or
cease to menstruate altogether for a time.
Menopausal symptoms may occur.
Conception may still be possible however
and birth control should be discussed since
the potentially hazardous effects of
anticancer drugs on the fetus` make
pregnancy at this time unadvisable. Once
chemotherapy is stopped, conception and
normal pregnancy may be possible.
In men, the number and viability of sperm
may be reduced. During chemotherpay,
therefore, many men are sterile, although
with no loss of potency. When drug therapy
is discontinued, some men regain normal
function of the testes, but fertility may be
permanently impaired by these drugs.
It is important to remember that while
chemotherapy may have effects on fertility,
it usually has no effect on one's ability to
have sexual relations.
Miscellaneous side effects—The patient
who is receiving chemotherapy should know
that some drugs may cause other side
effects not listed here.
Since 1943 the Ontario Cancer Treatment too, had . an advanced cancer
po
and Research Foundation has been battling Belgium,
that complex and formidable collection of establishment helped by a population and
diseases known as "cancer". government that gave unstintingly to
Without fanfare, the.. Foundation's clinics medical causes and helped, too, by the fact,
and staff have built a reputation for being its Belgian Congo provided 95 per cent of the
among the first in the nation and the world world's supply of radium.,
to develop and to use the newest equiptnent All nations faced similar problems: a
and tactics in this medical war. public frightened of cancer - a people who
It was in Ontario that the first cancer pa- delayed in seeking treatment nib many
tient was treated with radiation from the cancers were inoperable; a body of physi-
Canadian-developed "cobalt bomb" and, in clans wittibiit proper training in treating or
fact, the setup of the Foundation's network even detecting cancer in the patients.
of seven regional cancer centres was a In 1928, in London, leading surgeons of
world model in medical organization. Stockholm, Brussels, Paris and London
Over these past 41 years, some forms of hosted an International Cancer Congress to
cancer have been beaten back; in fact, some tell the world's physicians about their work
have virtually disappeared as a major pro- and success in the use of radium. This was
blem. Other forms - and there are many - the first detailed account of success with
have grown, their forces -fed by factors still radium treatment and the conference firm -
unknown in some cases. ly placed radium in the front rank of cancer
The battle against this frustrating enemy treatment everywhere. 1930,�, Hebert A.
began in Ontario, officially, in 1931. Before The following year,
that year, the only methods of treatment for Bruce, then the owner of Toronto's
cancer were surgical and the little- Wellesley Hospital, toured the chief radium
centre in London and came home to launch a
crusade to convince the provincial govern-
ment to buy this new material for the pro-
�Aae-{�'g
of the 1930s cancer hard vine's fight against cancer. " -
eady taken cave was also continuing- ius 1u -y �ng-euu"
paign to persuade the Toronto General
Hospital to buy radium and set up a radium
institute. Dr. .Richards .later became the
first medical director of the Ontario Cancer
Treatment and Research Foundation.
The provincial government was being
pressed by a number of hospitals throughout
Ontario to help them purchase radium, as
well. Finally, the Ontario Medical Associa-
tion (OMA) threw its weight behind the
drive to bring radium into use against
,,.cancer. There was some urgency because
many doctors were becoming enthusiastic
ufferina from cancer
understood power of radiation - the killing of
cancer cells with the rays from radium or
later from high voltage x-rays.
_ r the number -two -spot -in- --- - wine time, Dr: Gordon -- a _
ds
the macabre mortality ratings war; at ages
50-69 it ranked first. Statistics showed the
disease was increasing throughout North
America and Europe.
Two of the reasons for the increase were
that people were living longer and more
were reaching the age group most suscepti-
ble tq, the common forms of the disease, and
also that cancer was being diagnosed more
frequently as techniques and training of
doctors improved. Discounting these fac-
tors, however, there was little doubt cancer
was increasing.
In Ontario, in 1931, cancer of the stomach
accounted for 212 of each 1,000 cancer about the use of radiation, and there -was
deaths. Lung cancer struck only 22 out of growing concern about the small amounts of
each 1,000. Today, these figues have been radium being used without supervision by
turned around: stomach cancer causes only private practitioners and clinics throughout
about six per cent of cancer deaths in men, the province. As the doctors had pointed out
while lung cancer causes about 31 per cent m London, in 1928, radium was a dangerous
of male cancer deaths. Obviously, cancer is material in the hands of untrained persons.
not a disease that remains constant: it is The OMA urged the government to set up a
dynamic and changes as lifestyles and oc- Royal Commission to investigate the whole
cupational hazards change. subject of cancer treatment in Ontario.
In the late 1920s, in an international sense, - In June 1931, the government set up the
the approach to the fight against cancer was' Royal Commission on the use of radium and
inconsistent as well. The United States had al x-rays in the treatment of the sick, etc.,
vigorous, questioning cancer community known more informally as the Cody Com -
which, in true American spirit, was often in mission after its chairman - Henry John
the forefront in the use of the most radical Cody. The commission produced a corn
treatments and in the most probing reseal-- prehensive picture of the world's cancer
ch. establishments, a closer look at the Cana -
The French were sophisticated and were dian scene and focussed on the shortcom-
Swedes had, by far, the best social system to Tarn to page 16 •
leaders in research and in radiation. The
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