Gerhard Kraft
Gerhard Kraft (29 October 1941 – 18 March 2023) was a German physicist, best known for introducing heavy ion cancer therapy in Europe.
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He was the founder and director of the Biophysics Department at the GSI Helmholtz Centre for Heavy Ion Research in Darmstadt (Germany).[1] Particle therapy had already been performed in US and Japan using protons, carbon, and other light ions. Gerhard Kraft introduced it in Europe, with two significant innovations: raster scanning and biological treatment planning. Under his direction, 440 patients were treated from 1997 to 2008 at GSI.[2] Therapy now continues at the Heidelberger Ionenstrahl-Therapiezentrum using the system introduced at GSI.[1]
Biography
Gerhard Kraft was born on 29 October 1941 in Heidelberg.[2] He studied Physics in Heidelberg and Cologne.[2] Kraft got his PhD at the University of Cologne with a study of energy loss of carbon ions in matter.[3] After a two year fellowship at the Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory (Berkeley, CA, US)[2] under the supervision of Cornelius A. Tobias, he went back to Germany with the idea of using high-energy carbon ions to cure cancer.[4] Since 1981 he started his work on heavy-ion radiobiology and radiotherapy at GSI, and the treatment room was completed in 1997.[2] The last patient was treated in 2008.[2] Kraft died on 18 March 2023 in Heidelberg.[2]
Awards
Kraft received many awards over his career, some of which are listed below:
- 1993 Honorary professor at the University of Kassel[5]
- 1999 Erwin Schrödinger Award, Helmholtz Association[2][6]
- 2000 Otto Hahn Prize of the City of Frankfurt am Main[2]
- 2006 Bacq & Alexander Award, European Radiation Research Society[2]
- 2006 Ulrich Hagen Award, German Society for Radiation Research[2]
- 2008 Officer's Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany[2]
- 2008–2011 Helmholtz Honorary Professor[7]
- 2009 Ph.D. h.c., University of Giessen[8]
- 2013 Honorary member of Particle Therapy Co-Operative Group (PTCOG)[9]
- 2015 Honorary member of Deutsche Gesellschaft für medizinische Physik (DGMP)[10]
- 2018–2021 Honorary President of European Radiation Research Society[11]
Publications
- Bethge, K.; Kraft, G.; Kreisler, P.; Walter, G. (27 April 2004). Medical Applications of Nuclear Physics. Springer Science & Business Media. ISBN 978-3-540-20805-1.
- Kraft, Gerhard (1998). "Radiotherapy with Heavy Ions: Radiobiology, Clinical Indications and Experience at GSI, Darmstadt". Tumori Journal. SAGE Publications. 84 (2): 200–204. doi:10.1177/030089169808400217. ISSN 0300-8916. PMID 9620245. S2CID 25579345.
- Kraft, Gerhard (2005). "Tumortherapie mit Ionenstrahlen". Bionik. Berlin/Heidelberg: Springer-Verlag. pp. 409–421. doi:10.1007/3-540-26948-7_24. ISBN 3-540-21890-4.
- Amaldi, Ugo; Kraft, Gerhard (2005). "Recent applications of Synchrotrons in cancer therapy with Carbon Ions". Europhysics News. EDP Sciences. 36 (4): 114–118. Bibcode:2005ENews..36..114A. doi:10.1051/epn:2005402. ISSN 0531-7479.
- Amaldi, Ugo; Kraft, Gerhard (11 July 2005). "Radiotherapy with beams of carbon ions". Reports on Progress in Physics. IOP Publishing. 68 (8): 1861–1882. Bibcode:2005RPPh...68.1861A. doi:10.1088/0034-4885/68/8/r04. ISSN 0034-4885. S2CID 121346829.
- Eickhoff, Hartmut; Haberer, Thomas; Kraft, Gerhard; Krause, Udo; Richter, Mathias; Steiner, Rudolf; Debus, Jürgen (1999). "The GSI Cancer Therapy Project". Strahlentherapie und Onkologie. Springer Science and Business Media LLC. 175 (S2): 21–24. doi:10.1007/bf03038880. ISSN 0179-7158. PMID 10394389. S2CID 13870164.
- Haberer, Th.; Becher, W.; Schardt, D.; Kraft, G. (1993). "Magnetic scanning system for heavy ion therapy". Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research Section A: Accelerators, Spectrometers, Detectors and Associated Equipment. Elsevier BV. 330 (1–2): 296–305. Bibcode:1993NIMPA.330..296H. doi:10.1016/0168-9002(93)91335-k. ISSN 0168-9002.
References
- "Prof. Dr. Gerhard Kraft". GSI (in German). 22 March 2023. Retrieved 14 July 2023.
- "Pionier der Schwerionentherapie verstorben: Trauer um Biophysiker Gerhard Kraft". GSI (in German). 24 March 2023. Retrieved 14 July 2023.
- "Trauer in Darmstadt um einen Pionier der Schwerionentherapie". Echo Online (in German). 6 April 2023. Retrieved 14 July 2023.
- Durante, Marco; Debus, Jürgen (2018). "Heavy Charged Particles: Does Improved Precision and Higher Biological Effectiveness Translate to Better Outcome in Patients?". Seminars in Radiation Oncology. Elsevier BV. 28 (2): 160–167. doi:10.1016/j.semradonc.2017.11.004. ISSN 1053-4296.
- "Erwin-Schrödinger-Preisträger ist auch GhK-Honorarprofessor". Informationsdienst Wissenschaft – Nachrichten (in German). 12 January 2000. Retrieved 14 July 2023.
- "Erwin-Schrödinger-Preis". Stifterverband (in German). Retrieved 14 July 2023.
- Mau, Jens (2010). "Gerhard Kraft: Der Unnachgiebige". Kma – Klinik Management Aktuell (in German). Georg Thieme Verlag KG. 15 (6): 70–73. doi:10.1055/s-0036-1575647. ISSN 1439-3514. S2CID 98928374.
- "Ehrendoktorwürde für Verdienste in der Krebsforschung an Prof. Gerhard Kraft". Informationsdienst Wissenschaft – Nachrichten (in German). 12 December 2008. Retrieved 14 July 2023.
- PTCOG52 General Assembly Report 2013
- "Press". GSI. 13 November 2015. Retrieved 14 July 2023.
- "EUROPEAN RADIATION RESEARCH SOCIETY". ERRS Home (in German). 5 November 1959. Retrieved 14 July 2023.
Further reading
- "Tumortherapie mit schweren Ionen". Internat Solling (in German). 18 July 2019. Retrieved 14 July 2023.
- Tumor Therapy @ GSI, Gerhard Kraft Biophysics Dep. GSI Darmstadt, Germany
- "Heilende Strahlen". Frankfurter Rundschau (in German). 29 December 2010. Retrieved 14 July 2023.
External links
- "Particle Therapy Co-Operative Group". PTCOG. Retrieved 15 July 2023.
- "Biophysik". GSI (in German). 31 May 2011. Retrieved 15 July 2023.
- "Universitätsklinikum Heidelberg: Heidelberger Ionenstrahl-Therapiezentrum (HIT)". Universitätsklinikum Heidelberg (in German). 28 January 2019. Retrieved 15 July 2023.