Current status and future trends in particle therapy – lessons from an interdisciplinary workshop

To provide an introduction to the special issue containing the proceedings of the workshop on cancer therapy using hadrons (proton, carbon ions or boron neutron capture therapy) that was held in Pavia in October 2023 and organized by CNAO and IAEA. Papers contained in the issue are briefly summarized. This issue contains a collection of papers from the workshop that provide a great opportunity to learn about the status and progress of this technology. Particle therapy is exponentially growing worldwide. While several clinical trials are now providing convincing evidence of the effectiveness of the treatment in tumor control and reduced toxicity, the technology remains expensive and the cost effectiveness is still under debate. The IAEA-CNAO workshop provided a clear picture of the state of the art and future prospective of this technology.