NHS75 – revisiting one of our first proton beam therapy patients, Prescilia

Prescilia from Hackney was one of the first patients to be treated at the UCLH proton beam therapy centre which opened in December 2021.

She was just 9 when she suddenly lost all her vision and was diagnosed with a rare type of benign (non-cancerous) brain tumour.

Now aged 11, we spoke to Prescilia and her mum Judith to find out how she’s doing and look back on her treatment as we mark the 75th anniversary of the NHS.

“It was such a worrying time as everything happened very quickly,” explains mum of four Judith. “Prescilia suddenly lost her sight and we didn’t know what was wrong. She had an MRI scan and the doctor said she had to have emergency surgery that day.”

Another operation followed to restore her sight and she was then referred to our new proton beam therapy (PBT) centre in the University College Hospital Grafton Way Building. This specialised form of radiotherapy is extremely precise, making it the ideal treatment for Prescilia.

Just under two years on, Prescilia is doing really well. The PBT treatment managed to shrink her tumour and she now only sees her doctor every six months for a check-up.

She is back at her primary school and about to start secondary school in September, something that she is both nervous and excited about.

“I remember the PBT treatment really well even though you can’t feel anything at all when it happens - it’s just a beam shining on you as it moves around,” said Prescilia. “I really liked the playroom in the PBT centre as it has loads of fun games in it. And I got to meet Dr Xand from Operation Ouch which was amazing!”

UCLH is one of two national NHS centres delivering proton beam therapy, along with The Christie in Manchester. The high-energy proton treatment reduces the risk of radiation damage to healthy tissues, which makes it an ideal treatment for certain brain tumours like the one Prescilia had. Her doctor, Yen Ching Chang, explains,

“Every patient is different but, for Prescilia, PBT was an ideal treatment as she was just 9 at the time which meant that she was still growing and her brain was still developing. PBT minimises the risk of damaging healthy tissue and brain cells around the tumour which is especially important for children. It’s wonderful to see Prescilia’s progress when we meet for her check-ups.”

Since our PBT centre opened 18 months ago, we have treated over 250 patients with PBT, three-quarters of whom have been children. Once it is fully up and running, the PBT centre at UCLH will be able to treat up to 650 NHS patients per year from across the south of the UK.