LEE COUNTY, Fla - Lee Memorial Health System has become one of five sites chosen to take part in clinical trials for a new cancer treatment. WINK News is told this now places them in an elite position.

The announcement was made Tuesday during a presentation and press conference at South Fort Myers High School.

It came after hundreds of people packed the auditorium to hear about the treatment from researcher, Dr. Steven Curley, and inventor, John Kanzius.

Kanzius is a part time Sanibel resident who suffers from leukemia and built the system in his garage.

Here's how it works: tiny gold nanoparticles are injected into the cancer patient and carried through the blood stream by a targeting molecule. They attach only to cancer cells. Radio waves are then used to heat the particles, destroying cancer cells, while leaving healthy cells intact.

Clinical tests in animals have already been a huge success.

Now Lee Memorial is set to be a part of it all.

"I go with people I know and quality work. I know we want to do this right. When you're trying to prove a new treatment, it's got to be done right. Period, end of story. I think you've got the ability to do that here," said Dr. Curley, about his selection of Lee Memorial.

Kanzius says they're still about two and a half to three years away from those clinical trials. Some of the other cites could include Johns Hopkins and the University of California, San Fransisco.

WINK News was the only station that was a part of the event.