Cancer treatment in the Americas is about to enter a new era, with Florida poised to become the only location in the Western Hemisphere offering a cutting-edge “heavy particle” therapy.
Governor Ron DeSantis, joined by First Lady Casey DeSantis and Mayo Clinic leaders, announced the launch of a carbon ion therapy program at the clinic’s Jacksonville campus on Thursday. The technology, currently available only in select locations like Japan and Europe, represents a significant leap forward from traditional radiation.
“We are here today with the backdrop of all the heavy artillery you see for treating cancer to announce the next major step forward,” DeSantis said, standing in the newly constructed Dwan Family Building.
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Carbon ion therapy differs from standard X-ray or proton treatments by using heavier particles—carbon ions are 12 times heavier than protons—to destroy cancer cells. Dr. Kent Thielen, CEO of Mayo Clinic in Florida, described the technology as a “category of one” achievement.
“Because photons have no mass or charge, they can’t be stopped precisely in the tumor,” Thielen explained, noting that traditional radiation often exposes healthy tissue to damage. Carbon ions, however, can be deposited with “extraordinary precision,” obliterating the DNA of cancer cells while sparing surrounding organs.
The massive infrastructure required for the therapy includes a synchrotron particle accelerator larger than a football field. The facility will also offer proton therapy starting in early 2027, with carbon ion treatment expected to follow in 2028 pending FDA regulatory approval.
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The project is supported by substantial state funding. DeSantis noted that Florida has directed roughly $30 million to $50 million specifically toward this initiative, part of a broader $1 billion investment in cancer research and care during his tenure.
For First Lady Casey DeSantis, a breast cancer survivor, the announcement was personal. She emphasized that the precision of carbon ion therapy offers patients not just a better chance at survival, but a better life after treatment.
“As somebody who had radiation therapy—six weeks of it to be exact—and my left arm doesn’t work as well as my right arm… it gives you a lot of hope that people who find themselves in a situation where they are going to have to seek therapy might not have the ramifications,” she said.
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The governor framed the initiative as part of a larger strategy to make Florida a global destination for medical innovation, suggesting that patients who once traveled to Minnesota or Houston are now increasingly coming to Jacksonville.
“No one else is doing this anywhere in the United States,” DeSantis said. “I think this is going to end up doing an awful lot of good.”
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