It looks like a “not in my back yard” (NIMBY) moment for Britain's first proton therapy installation in the Marylebone neighborhood in London — at least if famed actress Dame Barbara Windsor gets her way.

The $32 million dollar facility is slated to go into the basement of a clinic on Harley Street, which is near her residence.

Windsor and 19 other locals have sent a letter of protest to the Westminster council opposing the plans, which the Evening Standard reported says, in part, “the inclusion of a proton beam therapy unit utilizing unproven light technology is not acceptable in this densely built-up area, close to family residences.”
One local pointed out to the paper that, “the proposed development will completely change what is now a relatively quiet cul-de-sac into a noisy, dirty, and smelly parking lot.”

The protest letter went on to claim that “experts contacted by residents have commented that insufficient information is in the public domain in order to be able to comment on either the viability or safety characteristics of the proposed technology,” according to the paper.

The paper also claimed that an anonymous mother with a home near the planned site stated that “no one should feel comfortable enough to authorize the installation of such experimental, highly radioactive equipment in the heart of London, close to houses, schools.

“A heavily populated city is not a testing ground for new technologies, in particular when these rely on radiation.”

One possible hurdle that could block the development is that a three-story basement will be needed to house the device – and the local building codes normally restrict basements to a single level, according to the news organization.

Despite this siting concern in Britain, the National Health Service has slated over $300 million to build and equip the Christie NHS Foundation Trust in Manchester and the University College London Hospitals (UCLH) proton center in London. Those are underway and expected to be online by 2019.

The proton market is growing. A report this month from Research and Markets projects says that “by 2022, the U.S. will have 38 proton therapy centers. Consequently, the market will attain revenue of around $1 billion by 2022, growing at a CAGR of over 16 percent during the forecast period (2015-2022).”

The NHS has been sending patients in need of proton therapy abroad. Notable was the case, in 2014, of Ashya King, a child with brain cancer who was treated in Prague, after his parents took him without medical consent from Southampton General Hospital.

The child is still doing well, apparently clear of medical issues, according the the Evening Standard.

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