초록 ▼

A tumorous patient is injected with a compound including an element that accumulates in tumors and that has an isotope which emits an alpha particle in a neutron capture reaction. The patient is positioned in front of a radiation beam that has been filtered to remove most neutrons having energies ab

A tumorous patient is injected with a compound including an element that accumulates in tumors and that has an isotope which emits an alpha particle in a neutron capture reaction. The patient is positioned in front of a radiation beam that has been filtered to remove most neutrons having energies above 30 KeV and most thermal neutrons, leaving predominantly epithermal neutrons which are moderated to a thermal level by outer layers of tissue and are captured by the incorporated isotope. A radiation beam having neutrons with a wide distribution of energies is filtered with aluminum and sulfur filters, whose cross sections complement each other in providing a beam with energies predominantly in the epithermal range. The filter mass attenuates the gamma radiation. Beams with lower ratios of undesirable gamma radiation to epithermal beam intensity can be attained with filter combinations which include liquid argon. A poor geometry filter of bismuth or lead can also improve the gamma to neutron ratio. Preferably the beam is filtered through a thermal neutron filter as well.

대표청구항 ▼

A method of treating a patient with a malignant tumor comprising administering to the patient a compound that selectively accumulates in tumor cells relative to normal cells, said compound including an element having an isotope that emits alpha particles when bombarded with neutrons, said compound b

A method of treating a patient with a malignant tumor comprising administering to the patient a compound that selectively accumulates in tumor cells relative to normal cells, said compound including an element having an isotope that emits alpha particles when bombarded with neutrons, said compound being administered in an effective dose whereat the selective accumulation of said isotope in said tumor cells is sufficient to selectively kill tumor cells by alpha particle emission upon bombardment by neutrons, providing a source that emits a beam of neutrons, filtering said neutrons through some combination of an aluminum filter, a sulfur filter and an argon filter, which combination selectively transmits neutrons in the epithermal energy range and attenuates gamma radiation, and positioning the patient so that the tumor is in the path of said filtered beam for a time sufficient to effect tumor destruction.