Santa made an un-seasonal stop at the UF Health Proton Therapy Institute this month to spread more Christmas cheer to last throughout the year. Inspired by the children undergoing cancer treatment and his late brother, the “original” Santa in the family, proton alum Joe McGee works throughout the Holiday season as a professional Santa in the Atlanta area. Joe generously puts aside the proceeds he earns as Santa Joe and has returned to the Institute every January since 2014 to deliver a donation for the Children’s Fund.

This year, Joe mentioned that people have caught on to his mission and have donated above and beyond to benefit what he has named, “The Santa David Children’s Fund,” in honor of his brother. The funds he and his wife, Dawn, have shared over the last five years have directly impacted hundreds of children and their families by supporting various programs, child life staff and activities that aim to make treatment easier for even the youngest of children and allow them to enjoy being kids.

Santa Joe also makes an appearance every December at the Institute to hear the children’s Christmas wishes and deliver presents. 

“If I can bring joy to one precious little one, then it’s all worth it,” said Joe.

Current patients created an original painting to gift Santa Joe for his generosity, time and talent. You can book a Santa Joe appearance in the Atlanta area by contacting him at www.facebook.com/santajoemcgee or email at santajoemcgee@gmail.com.

Did you know that you can help the UF Health Proton Therapy Institute provide life-saving care every time you shop? AmazonSmile is a website operated by Amazon with the same products, prices and shopping features as Amazon.com. The difference is, when you shop through AmazonSmile and select Florida Proton Therapy Institute, Inc. as your charity organization, Amazon will donate 0.5 percent of the price of your eligible purchases to the Institute. 

If you already shop on Amazon or would like to contribute, please consider bookmarking smile.amazon.com and selecting us as your charity benefactor. From resources for clinical research to funding for patient support programs, every gift big or small can help us deliver the best possible outcomes and experience for our patients.

The UF Health Proton Therapy Institute began treating patients this month in the new, single-room proton therapy system – known as the Proteus^®ONE manufactured by IBA – that was installed last fall. It is the centerpiece of a multiphase $39 million expansion and upgrade project started in 2016 that improves treatment efficiency and technology.

The 10,000-square-foot expansion includes both an accelerator, used to speed up the protons, and a treatment gantry equipped with pencil beam scanning – an advanced delivery technique.  The facility now has five treatment rooms – four gantries and one fixed beam room – and two accelerators used to speed up the protons – a synchrocyclotron dedicated to the new treatment room and a cyclotron that powers the original four treatment rooms.

Phase 3 will begin soon and involves the installation of a dedicated pencil beam scanning nozzle in one original gantry. Once completed, estimated in 2021, the Institute will have all five treatment rooms in operation and the ability to treat 25 percent more patients.

The addition of pencil beam scanning enables the treatment of more types of cancer using a thin beam of protons that is steered one layer at a time to conform to the exact shape, size and depth of the treatment area. The Institute has one of the most versatile proton therapy systems in the world. Each delivery technique – double scattering and pencil beam scanning – enables physicians to use the optimal treatment delivery customized for each patient.

Proton therapy is an advanced form of radiation therapy that uses protons rather than traditional X-rays. It targets tumors and cancer cells more precisely. This means less damage to surrounding tissue which results in a lower risk of side effects and a better quality of life during and after cancer treatment.

The UF Health Proton Therapy Institute is the regional resource for proton therapy. It has been open in Jacksonville since 2006 and has delivered 288,000 proton treatments to more than 8,500 cancer patients from Jacksonville and 33 countries.

An exceptional gift from The Lastinger Family Foundation of St. Augustine, FL, has created the Lastinger Family Foundation Endowment for Pediatric Care at UF Health Proton Therapy Institute. 

The fund will provide support for the care of pediatric patients and their families at the Institute. Support generated by this endowment will help our pediatric patients and their families in many ways, but in particular, through the UF Health Proton Therapy Institute’s Pediatric and Child Life Program.

Mr. Allen and Mrs. Delores Lastinger, Officers of the Lastinger Family Foundation, were motivated to make a gift to help our youngest patients when they observed members of our pediatric team working with children and their families. Our staff is challenged daily to help pediatric patients and their families cope with treatment and the multitude of circumstances that a diagnosis of cancer can create. Our team knows that battling cancer at a young age extends to the entire family, and that families who have a child undergoing treatment may have economic challenges, logistical issues, difficulties with scheduling tutoring, and may even have to consider relocating for several weeks in order to secure the best treatment possible. We strive to provide support for our families that allows both the patient and their family to focus on treatment.

Private philanthropy is vital to the services provided by UF Health Proton Therapy Institute, especially services that create special moments and memories for patients and families. “This very generous gift from the Lastinger Family Foundation will truly advance and support our work with our pediatric patients,” says Executive Director Stuart Klein. “We are incredibly grateful to Allen, Delores, and the Lastinger Family Foundation for their endorsement of our program.”