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OKLAHOMA CITY - When Oklahoma native Dennis Starbuck, 67, was diagnosed with anal canal cancer, he felt like it was a “death sentence.” Through a routine prostate check, his physician found something unusual and suggested he get a colonoscopy, which revealed the cancer.

Standard radiation wasn’t an option for Starbuck because it would do too much damage to tissue and organs adjacent to the tumor. He researched his treatment options and was interested in proton therapy. Doctors originally declined his request because protons had never been used on a person with anal cancer.

After further consideration, Sameer Keole, M.D., medical director of the ProCure Proton Therapy Center in Oklahoma City, worked with a team of physicians, medical physicists and dosimetrists on Starbuck’s case to develop the first protocol for a range of gastrointestinal treatments with proton therapy. Starbuck was the first person in the country to receive this type of treatment for this disease.

“When I was first exploring my treatment options I thought I’d hit a dead end. It didn’t seem like there was a good treatment for my disease,” remembers Starbuck. “Then I met Dr. Keole and the folks at INTEGRIS and ProCure. I’m so grateful to Dr. Keole and everyone for giving me hope. Now my treatment is over and I don’t have to have cancer anymore.”

Starbuck learned of the multi-disciplinary cancer treatment options offered by the INTEGRIS Cancer Institute of Oklahoma and the ProCure Proton Therapy Center through his friend’s son who had been on the construction team that built the center.