Boron neutron capture therapy

Seminars

VBLHEP Specialised A. M. Baldin Seminar

Relativistic nuclear physics and polarisation phenomena #833

Date and Time: Wednesday, 16 April 2025, at 11:00 AM

Venue: Conference Hall (bld. 3), the Veksler and Baldin Laboratory of High Energy Physics, online on Webinar

Seminar topic: “Boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT): fundamentals, current state, and future research”

Speaker: Dmitry Kasatov (Institute of Nuclear Physics of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Science)

Abstract:

Boron Neutron Capture Therapy (BNCT) is a selective method for destroying tumour cells by accumulating the stable isotope boron-10 within them and subsequently irradiating them with epithermal neutrons. When boron absorbs a neutron, the nuclear reaction 10B(n,α)7Li occurs, releasing a significant amount of energy (2.79 MeV) precisely within the boron-containing cell, leading to its destruction. Requirements for the clinical implementation of this method are: compact sources of epithermal neutrons, effective boron delivery agents, and advancements in BNCT-specific dosimetry techniques. Currently, there are no clinically applied dosimetry methods that account for all dose components in BNCT. It is important to note that it is not possible to measure all dose components directly; indirect measurements and calculations, including the use of chemical dosimetry, are planned for this purpose.