Mini Neutron Generator
APPLICATIONS OF TECHNOLOGY:Fast neutron brachytherapy for breast, prostrate and other tumors between 1 and 5 cm in diameter
ADVANTAGES:
Compact and portable: ~ 4 cm in diameter x 13 cm long Radiation dose to healthy tissue is expected to be much less than with external sources Expected to be more effective than gamma radiation in treating radioresistant tumors Doesn’t require radiation shielding or a remotely activated HDR system Delivers ~ 106 n/s with 2.5 MeV D-D reactions and ~ 108 n/s with 14 MeV D-T reactions
DESCRIPTION:
Ka-Ngo Leung and colleagues at Berkeley Lab have designed a compact deuterium-deuterium (D-D) or deuterium-tritium (D-T) neutron generator for fast neutron brachytherapy treatment of tumors ~ 1 to 5 cm in diameter. The Berkeley Lab neutron source could be inserted directly into a tumor, minimizing damage to healthy tissue while delivering a potent dose of radiation to the tumor.
Currently, brachytherapy neutron sources in the United States are manually afterloaded low-dose-rate (LDR) 252Cf sources. Because the spontaneous fission of 252Cf cannot be turned off, high-dose-rate (HDR) sources require expensive shielding and loading devices to protect clinical personnel and patients. An accelerator based neutron source such as the Berkeley Lab D-D or D-T neutron generator has the advantage of being switchable, eliminating the need for shielding and a remotely afterloaded HDR system.
The generator is composed of a 2 cm x 2.5 cm plasma source from which deuterium or tritium ions are extracted and then accelerated. The accelerated ion beam is then directed down a 10 cm long needle-like tube (diameter ~ 3 mm) with a titanium target at the end where neutrons are produced. The primary cell killing mechanism of fast neutrons is the elastic collision of neutrons with hydrogen atoms in tissue. Because heavy charge particles have a short range and high linear energy transfer (LET), the recoiled protons leave a track with a large number of free radicals in a small volume. These free radicals will react with cancerous cells and can cause the death of these cells.
Patents:
US 7,342,988
Inventor(s): Ka-Ngo Leung
Type of Offer: Licensing
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