Partnership to focus on proton beam therapy

A university, a hospital and a medical school are teaming up for a new research and academic partnership in the field of nuclear medicine and proton beam therapy.

Northern Illinois University, Northwestern Memorial Hospital and Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine announced the partnership Tuesday.

They are joining with a planned proton treatment center that's affiliated with NIU. That center, called the Northern Illinois Proton Treatment Center, hasn't been built. It hit a snag over financing during the global financial crisis and its state approval lapsed last year.

The partnership that was announced Tuesday will focus on treatment protocols for proton therapy and health care workforce training for students.

Program development will be guided by an advisory board of experts from each institution and from regional health care networks.