The NIU Board of Trustees approved a number of resolutions Tuesday to continue the planning and development of an NIU proton therapy center in DuPage County, according to an NIU press release.

The $160 million center is to be built at the DuPage National Technology Park in West Chicago.

Proton therapy is an advanced, highly effective form of radiation treatment, utilizing proton beams to treat cancer, according to the release.

A target date for the opening of the facility is sometime in 2010. The center could potentially treat as many as 1,500 patients each year, according to the release.