New State-Of-The-Art Cancer Facility In Danbury Clears Hurdle

DANBURY, CT — A state-of-the-art cancer treatment facility planned for the city has cleared another regulatory milestone.

Danbury Proton has announced that the Connecticut Office of Health Strategy has approved the company's Certificate of Need, submitted in May. The next step will be for OHS to schedule a public hearing.

Connecticut's Certificate of Need regulatory program requires health care providers to obtain State approval prior to making major changes in the healthcare landscape such as mergers, substantial capital investments in new equipment or facilities, changing access to services, discontinuing a medical service, or introducing a new technology like proton therapy.

Proton therapy is a non-invasive cancer-fighting tool first used to treat patients in 1954. It received approval by the Food & Drug Administration in 1988. The treatment protects healthy tissue and sensitive organs, according to the company, resulting in few to no side effects. There are currently only 36 operational proton therapy centers in the entire United States, and none in Connecticut.

Danbury Proton officials do not know when the hearing might be scheduled, according to a news release.

The new facility is slotted for a site at 85 Wooster Heights, and would create over 100 construction jobs during a two-year period, the company projected. When operational in 2023, Danbury Proton would employ over 30 full-time employees including radiation oncologists, medical physicists, radiation therapists, medical support and administrative staff