Samcheok City Accelerates Heavy Ion Cancer Treatment Cluster... Benchmarking France and Belgium

Samcheok City Conducts On-Site Inspections in France and Belgium, Strengthens International Cooperation
Samcheok Dogye Medical Industry Cluster Enters Implementation Phase

The Samcheok City overseas delegation from Gangwon Province announced on the 16th that it visited France and Belgium from December 7 to 12 to directly inspect manufacturers of particle accelerators for cancer treatment and the construction sites of heavy ion therapy centers. Through these visits, the delegation was able to concretize practical implementation plans for the medical project currently being promoted in Dogye, Samcheok, a region transitioning from the coal industry.

The Samcheok City overseas business trip team visited Caen in the Normandy region of France on the 8th to receive an explanation about the progress and operational plans of the carbon ion accelerator cancer treatment center (C400 IONS system) project being established by Normandy Hadron Therapy (NHa). Provided by Samcheok City

This overseas trip, accompanied by Park Sangsoo, Mayor of Samcheok, and Kwon Jeongbok, Chairman of the Samcheok City Council, aimed to broaden the range of options for particle accelerator (including heavy ion) equipment and to comprehensively examine the potential for cooperation with relevant companies, industrial firms, and universities. The purpose was to build a model in which medicine, industry, and education are interconnected around cancer treatment technology, in line with the implementation phase of the "Advanced Accelerator-Based Medical Industry Cluster Project," which has gained momentum following the government's preliminary feasibility study approval.

On December 8, the delegation visited Caen in the Normandy region of France to tour the construction site of the heavy ion accelerator cancer treatment center (C400 IONS system) being established by Normandy Hadron Therapy (NHa), and received a briefing on the project's progress and operational plans. They also held meetings with representatives from the University of Caen to review cases of educational and research collaboration linked to the heavy ion therapy center. In addition, they visited local industrial companies Probent and Graux, which manufacture core accelerator components, to assess the potential for local participation in equipment assembly and the broader industrial impact.

In particular, during a meeting with Sophie Gaugain, Vice President for Economic Affairs of the Normandy Region, the delegation shared policy implementation processes and success stories from Caen, where medicine, industry, and education have grown organically around the heavy ion accelerator. They also discussed strategies for industrial transformation and administrative implications that could be applied to the Dogye area of Samcheok.

Visiting Graux, a local industrial company manufacturing core accelerator components. Provided by Samcheok City.

On December 11, the delegation visited the headquarters of Ion Beam Applications (IBA), a world-renowned manufacturer of medical particle accelerator equipment in Belgium. There, they received an explanation of global supply cases of heavy ion and proton therapy systems, as well as regional success models in collaboration with organizations such as France's NHa. The delegation also confirmed specific supply schedules, including the step-by-step construction timeline, the period required to begin operations after system introduction, technology transfer, and maintenance systems. They exchanged views on the potential for cooperation linked to the Samcheok Dogye medical project.

A Samcheok City official stated, "This overseas trip provided an opportunity to directly observe real-world cases of building and operating heavy ion accelerator-based cancer treatment technologies and related industries, and to explore concrete directions for applying them to the conditions of the Dogye area in Samcheok. Moving forward, we will go beyond merely reviewing equipment introduction and will steadily pursue international cooperation and phased implementation strategies, with the goal of creating a medical industry cluster where technology, industry, and education grow together."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.