PSI Winter School for Proton Therapy 2026

18 Jan 2026, 18:00 → 23 Jan 2026, 17:30 Europe/Zurich

Auditorium (Paul Scherrer Institute)

Antony John Lomax (PSI - Paul Scherrer Institut), Damien Charles Weber (PSI - Paul Scherrer Institut)

Website is still under construction and updated on a regular basis, please join from time to time.

Registration is about to open end of July/beginning August 2025.

Please contact us to get the opening e-mail under: sibylle.bollhalder@psi.ch                               

Content of the course:                        

• Pediatrics and AYA
• Basic physics of proton therapy
• Radiation biology
• Delivery & treatment planning
• Therapy workflow
• Uncertainty & motion
• Specification, commissioning & Q.A.
• New directions in proton therapy

Aim of course:

To provide detailed knowledge on the clinical, physics and technological aspects of proton therapy using pencil beam scanning

Target audience:

Radiation oncologists, medical physicists, physicists, engineers, radiation technologists and dosimetrists. No previous knowledge of proton therapy is necessary.

Important:

Kindly note that the course is designed for 45 external participants and registration will close when the number of participants has been reached, but latest by: Monday, December 15th, 2025

 

Sunday 18 January

18:00 Enjoy the finger food

1 Registration

Dry run if requested.

20:00 Time at your convenience - you may enjoy the thermal baths

Monday 19 January

08:30 Departure to Paul Scherrer Institut - Meeting point in front of the hotel

2 Welcome (Introduction of faculty, virtual meeting, etc.)

Speaker: Damien Charles Weber (Paul Scherrer Institut)

3 A short historical overview of proton therapy

Speaker: Damien Charles Weber (Paul Scherrer Institut)

4 Basic physics for proton radiation

Speaker: Sairos Safai (PSI - Paul Scherrer Institut)

Coffee break

5 Basic radiaton biology of photons and protons

Speaker: Martin Pruschy (University Hospital Zurich)

6 How significant are RBE variations in proton therapy?

Speaker: Harald Paganetti (Massachusetts General Hospital / Harvard Medical School)

7 Outcome analysis - theory & modelling

Speaker: Harald Paganetti (Massachusetts General Hospital / Harvard Medical School)

12:15 Lunch break

8 Toxicity Clinical

Speaker: Esther Troost

9 Toxicity: Clinical impact of proton RBE

Speaker: Dirk Wagenaar

10 Second malignancies

Speaker: Uwe Schneider

15:00 Coffee break

11 Validation methodologies for the clinical benefit of proton therapy

Speaker: Johannes Langendijk (University Medical Center Groningen)

12 Treatment planning for pencil beam scanning and IMPT

Speaker: Antony John Lomax (PSI - Paul Scherrer Institut)

17:15 Group picture

17:20 Meeting point PSI West outside the auditorium

17:30 On the way to Park Hotel

18:00 Dinner at Parkhotel

19:30 Time at your convenience - you may enjoy the thermal baths

Tuesday 20 January

08:30 Departure to Paul Scherrer Institut - Meeting point in front of the hotel

Physicians block

13 Tumors of the skull base and spine chordoma and chondrosarcoma

Speaker: Dominic Leiser (PSI - Paul Scherrer Institut)

14 Proton therapy for adult CNS tumors

Speaker: Damien Charles Weber (Paul Scherrer Institut)

15 Head and neck cancers

Speaker: Johannes Langendijk (University Medical Center Groningen)

10:30 Coffee break

16 Proton therapy for pediatrics and AYA patients (part 1)

Speaker: Anita Mahajan (Mayo Clinic)

17 Proton therapy for pediatrics and AYA patients (part 2)

Speaker: Anita Mahajan (Mayo Clinic)

18 Reirradiation

Speaker: Piero Fossati (EBG MedAustron GmbH)

Physics block

19 Active scanning beam 1: Modulation delivery

Speaker: David Meer (PSI - Paul Scherrer Institut)

20 Active scanning beam 2: Controlling delivery

Speaker: Christian Michael Groh (PSI - Paul Scherrer Institut)

21 Active scanning beam 3: Checking delivery/dosimetry

Speaker: Michele Togno (PSI - Paul Scherrer Institut)

10:30 Coffee Break

22 Advanced physics

Speaker: Sairos Safai (PSI - Paul Scherrer Institut)

23 Accelerators and beam production techniques for proton therapy

Speaker: David Meer (PSI - Paul Scherrer Institut)

24 Technological innovation part 1: Delivery

Speaker: Konrad Pawel Nesteruk (PSI)

12:30 Lunch break

Physicians block

25 Liver PT

Speaker: Piero Fossati (EBG MedAustron GmbH)

26 Breast

Speaker: Stéphanie Peeters

14:30 Coffee break

27 Proton beam therapy of NSCLC – best practice

Speaker: Esther Troost

28 Financial Toxicity

Speaker: Barbara Bachtiary (Dr. med.)

Physics block

29 Technological innovation: From Eye to AI: Advances in Proton Therapy

Speaker: Zoltan Perko

30 Proton therapy workflow

Speaker: Michelle van Heerden

14:45 Coffee break

31 Imaging for proton

Speaker: Alessandra Bolsi (PSI - Paul Scherrer Institut)

32 Ocular proton treatment

Speaker: Jan Hrbacek (PSI - Paul Scherrer Institut)

16:15 Departure to social EVENT - Meeting point PSI West outside the auditorium

16:30 On the way to the social event

17:15 Bowling

19:00 Dinner

21:30 Back to Park Hotel Bad Zurzach

Wednesday 21 January

08:30 Departure to Paul Scherrer Institut - Meeting point in front of the Hotel

33 Commissioning a new facility: Specifications

Speaker: Alejandro Mazal (Centro de Protonterapia Quironsalud)

34 Commissioning a new facility: Clinical

Speaker: Arturs Meijers (PSI)

10:00 Coffee break and group allocation

10:30 On the way to the workshop

35 Workshop 1 to 4 in parallel

Speakers: Alexey Cherchik, Arturs Meijers (PSI), Nicola Bizzocchi (PSI - Paul Scherrer Institut)

11:45 Change workshop session

36 Workshop 1 to 4 in parallel

Speakers: Alessandra Bolsi (PSI - Paul Scherrer Institut), Michele Togno (PSI - Paul Scherrer Institut)

12:50 On the way for lunch

13:00 Lunch break

14:00 On the way to the workshop

37 Workshop 1 to 4 in parallel

Speaker: Antony John Lomax (PSI - Paul Scherrer Institut)

15:15 Change workshop session

38 Workshop 1 to 4 in parallel

Speakers: Christian Michael Groh (PSI - Paul Scherrer Institut), David Meer (PSI - Paul Scherrer Institut)

16:20 Coffee break

39 Site tour - Optional

18:10 on way back to meeting point outside the auditorium

18:25 On the way to Park Hotel

19:00 Dinner at Parkhotel

Thursday 22 January

08:30 Departure to Paul Scherrer Institut - Meeting point in front of the Hotel

40 Uncertainties in PT

Speaker: Francesca Albertini (PSI - Paul Scherrer Institut)

41 Motion / motion mitigation

Speaker: Ilaria Rinaldi

42 Rationale and implemenattion of online adaptive

Speaker: Francesca Albertini (PSI - Paul Scherrer Institut)

10:30 Coffee-Break

43 Technological innovation: Imaging

Speaker: Giovanni Fattori (PSI - Paul Scherrer Institut)

44 Technological Innovation: Treatment planning

Speaker: Jan Hrbacek (PSI - Paul Scherrer Institut)

12:00 Lunch break

45 Technological Innovation: Flash:: BIOLOGY

Speaker: Marie-Catherine Vozenin

46 Technological Innovation: Flash:: PHYSICS

Speaker: Robert Schäfer

47 Technological innovation: Spatially fractionated minibeams therapy

Speaker: TBD

14:30 Coffee break

48 Protons versus "the competition"

Speaker: Antony John Lomax (PSI - Paul Scherrer Institut)

49 Closing Remarks

Speakers: Antony John Lomax (PSI - Paul Scherrer Institut), Damien Charles Weber (PSI - Paul Scherrer Institut)

15:45 Departure to the hotel - Meeting point PSI West outside the auditorium

16:00 On the way to Park Hotel

16:30 Time at your convenience - you may enjoy the thermal baths

18:00 Dinner at Parkhotel

19:30 Time at your convenience - you may enjoy the thermal baths

Friday 23 January

07:30 Skiing day - Optional

The Skiing day will take place at Flumserberg.
For any further information about it, please see:
https://www.flumserberg.ch/en/Experience-winter

Tour within Paul Scherrer Institut - Optional

Wishing you a safe travel back to your home country.