Accelerator-Based Boron Neutron Capture Therapy and the Development

A.J. KREINER; H. DI PAOLO; A.A. BURLON; J.M. KESQUE; A.A. VALDA; M.E. DEBRAY; Y. GIBOUDOT; P. LEVINAS; M. FRAIMAN; V. ROMEO; H.R. SOMACAL; D.M. MINSKY

Cusco, Perú. Exposición oral (A.J. Kreiner)

Congreso; VII Latin American Symposium on Nuclear Physics and Applications; 2007

Dpto. Académico de Física, Universidad Nacional San Antonio Abad de Cusco

There is a generalized perception that the availability of suitable particle accelerators installed in hospitals, as neutron sources, may be crucial for the advancement of Boron Neutron Capture Therapy (BNCT). An ongoing project to develop a Tandem-ElectroStatic-Quadrupole accelerator for Accelerator-Based (AB)-BNCT is described here. The project goal is a machine capable of delivering 30 mA of 2.5 MeV protons to be used in conjunction with a neutron production target based on the 7Li(p,n)7Be reaction slightly beyond its resonance at 2.25 MeV.A folded tandem, with 1.25 MV terminal voltage, combined with an ElectroStatic Quadrupole (ESQ) chain is being designed and constructed.This machine is conceptually shown to be capable of accelerating a 30 mA proton beam to 2.5 MeV. These are the specifications needed to produce sufficiently intense and clean epithermal neutron beams, based on the 7Li(p,n)7Be reaction, to perform BNCT treatment for deep-seated tumors in less than an hour.This electrostatic machine is the technologically simplest and cheapest solution for optimized AB-BNCT.