Certain embodiments of the present disclosure relate to a neutron ray generating apparatus and a neutron ray therapy facility.
Boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) using a boron compound is known as a neutron capture therapy that irradiates a cancer cell with a neutron ray to kill the cancer cells. In the boron neutron capture therapy, boron incorporated into the cancer cell in advance is irradiated with the neutron ray, and the cancer cell is selectively destroyed by scattering of heavy charged particles generated by the irradiation.
For example, a neutron ray generating apparatus disclosed in the related art is used to generate a neutron ray used for the therapy described above. The neutron ray generating apparatus disclosed in the related art greatly bends a particle beam generated by an accelerator, using a bending electromagnet, and transports the particle beam to a target of a target disposition portion.
According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, there is provided a neutron ray generating apparatus including: an accelerator that emits a particle beam; a target disposition portion that disposes a target that is irradiated with the particle beam to generate a neutron ray; and a transport path that transports the particle beam between the accelerator and the target disposition portion. The target disposition portion and the accelerator are disposed on a reference line of the transport path. A first shield member that shields radiation and a second shield member that shields the radiation and that is disposed to be spaced apart from the first shield member toward an accelerator side are provided between the target disposition portion and the accelerator.
According to another embodiment of the present disclosure, there is provided a neutron ray therapy facility including: an accelerator that emits a particle beam; a target disposition portion that disposes a target that is irradiated with the particle beam to generate a neutron ray; and a transport path that transports the particle beam between the accelerator and the target disposition portion. The accelerator and the target disposition portion are disposed on a reference line of the transport path. A first shield member that shields radiation and a second shield member that shields the radiation and that is disposed to be spaced apart from the first shield member toward an accelerator side are provided between the target disposition portion and the accelerator.
Here, in such a configuration, the accelerator needs to be disposed such that the emission of the particle beam of the accelerator and the target disposition portion are perpendicular to each other. The present inventors have recognized that in this case, the entirety of the neutron ray generating apparatus becomes large due to a layout relationship between the accelerator and a transport path for the particle beam. On the other hand, when the accelerator is disposed such that the transport path becomes a straight line, there is a possibility that the accelerator is radioactivated due to the influence of radiation leaking from the target.
Accordingly, it is desirable to provide a neutron ray generating apparatus and a neutron ray therapy facility that can be reduced in size while suppressing radioactivation of an accelerator.
In the neutron ray generating apparatus according to the present disclosure, the target disposition portion and the accelerator are disposed on the reference line of the transport path. In such disposition, the size of the entirety of the apparatus can be reduced compared to disposition in which the trajectory of the particle beam from the accelerator is greatly bent as shown in
The transport path may include a first portion closer to the target disposition portion than to the accelerator, and a reference line of the first portion may overlap the accelerator. In this case, the radiation can be effectively shielded.
A connecting part between the transport path and the accelerator may be disposed to overlap the reference line. In this case, the particle beam emitted from the connecting part of the accelerator can travel straight toward the target along the reference line.
The second shield member may be movable or removable with respect to an installation position. In this case, since the second shield member is movable or removable from the installation position during maintenance, maintainability around the installation positions is improved.
The accelerator may emit the particle beam using a radio frequency. In this case, since different types of particles are less likely to be mixed into the particle beam, the quality of the neutron ray with which an irradiation target is irradiated can be improved. In addition, the need for a bending electromagnet or the like for sorting different types of particles can be eliminated.
The second shield member may be disposed at a position closer to the accelerator between the target disposition portion and the accelerator to locally protect the accelerator. In this case, the second shield member can locally protect the accelerator by narrowing down a range to be protected in the accelerator. Accordingly, the certainty of protection can be improved with a small amount of the shield material.
The second shield member may be disposed at a position closer to the target disposition portion between the target disposition portion and the accelerator. In this case, the second shield member can shield radiation leaking from the first shield member in a preliminary stage before the radiation spreads in a chamber.
According to the neutron ray therapy facility, the same actions and effects as those of the neutron ray generating apparatus described above can be obtained.
Hereinafter, a preferred embodiment of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
The neutron ray generating apparatus 1 includes an accelerator 2. The accelerator 2 accelerates particles, and emits a particle beam R. It is preferable that the accelerator 2 emits the particle beam R using a radio frequency. Namely, it is preferable that as the accelerator 2, an alternating current (AC) accelerator is adopted rather than a direct current (DC) accelerator such as an electrostatic (“single-ended”or “tandem”) accelerator. For example, a cyclotron, a linear accelerator, or the like may be adopted as the accelerator 2.
The particle beam R emitted from the accelerator 2 passes through a transport path 9 referred to as a beam duct of which the inside is kept vacuum and through which the beam can pass, and is transported to a target disposition portion 30. The target disposition portion 30 is a portion that disposes a target 10, and has a mechanism that holds the target 10 so as to assume an irradiation posture. The target disposition portion 30 disposes the target 10 at a position facing an end portion (emission port) of the transport path 9. The particle beam R emitted from the accelerator 2 passes through the transport path 9, and advances toward the target disposed at the end portion of the transport path 9. A plurality of electromagnets 4 (quadrupole electromagnets or the like) and a scanning electromagnet 6 are provided along the transport path 9. The plurality of electromagnets 4 adjust a beam axis of the particle beam R, for example, using electromagnets.
The scanning electromagnet 6 scans the particle beam R, and controls irradiation of the target 10 with the particle beam R. The scanning electromagnet 6 controls the irradiation position of the particle beam R with respect to the target 10.
The neutron ray generating apparatus 1 generates the neutron ray N by irradiating the target 10 with the particle beam R, and emits the neutron ray N toward the patient 50. The neutron ray generating apparatus 1 includes the target 10, a shield member 8, a deceleration member 39, and a collimator 20.
The target 10 is irradiated with the particle beam R to generate the neutron ray N. The target 10 is a solid member made of a material that generates the neutron ray N when irradiated with the particle beam R. Specifically, the target 10 is made of, for example, beryllium (Be), lithium (Li), tantalum (Ta), or tungsten (W), and has, for example, a disk-shaped solid form having a diameter of 160 mm. The target 10 is not limited to a disk shape, and may have another shape.
The deceleration member 39 decelerates the neutron ray N generated by the target 10 (decreases the energy of the neutron ray N). The deceleration member 39 may have a laminated structure including a layer 39A that mainly decelerates fast neutrons contained in the neutron ray N, and a layer 39B that mainly decelerates epithermal neutrons contained in the neutron ray N.
The shield member 8 shields the generated neutron ray N, a gamma ray generated along with the generation of the neutron ray N, and the like so as not to be released to the outside. The shield member 8 is provided to surround the deceleration member 39. An upper portion and a lower portion of the shield member 8 extend to an upstream side of the particle beam R from the deceleration member 39.
The collimator 20 shapes the irradiation field of the neutron ray N, and includes an opening 20a through which the neutron ray N passes. The collimator 20 is, for example, a block-shaped member including the opening 20a at the center.
Next, a configuration of the neutron ray generating apparatus 1 in the neutron ray therapy facility 100 will be described with reference to
The accelerator 2 is provided at a position spaced apart from the partition wall 103 in the accelerator chamber 101. Here, in order to a positional relationship between the accelerator 2, the transport path 9, the target 10, and the target disposition portion 30, various terms will be described.
First, a direction in which the accelerator 2 emits the particle beam R is referred to as an “emission direction D1”. An irradiation axis AX of the particle beam R emitted from the accelerator 2 in the emission direction D1 is set. The irradiation axis AX is a center line set for the particle beam R at a connecting part 33 between the accelerator 2 and the transport path 9. A reference line SL1 is a center axis of the transport path 9. The reference line SL1 may coincide with a center axis of the target 10 when the target 10 having a disk shape is disposed on the target disposition portion 30.
In the present embodiment, the target 10 and the target disposition portion 30 are disposed at a position facing the accelerator 2 in the emission direction D1. In this case, the accelerator 2 is disposed on the reference line SL1 of the transport path 9. The reference line SL1 of the transport path 9 is, for example, a center axis of the cylinder of a cylindrical vacuum duct forming a part of the transport path. The accelerator 2 can be disposed in a direction in which the cylindrical vacuum duct extends.
A state where the accelerator 2 is disposed on the reference line SL1 will be described with reference to
In the example shown in
Next, a reference trajectory TL1 of the particle beam R will be described. The reference trajectory TL1 of the particle beam R is a trajectory serving as a reference when the particle beam R moves between the accelerator 2 and the target 10. The reference trajectory TL1 is an advancing direction of the particle beam R, and for example, passes through the center axis of the cylindrical vacuum duct forming a beam transport path. The particle beam R may not completely pass on the reference trajectory TL1 during transport. For example, the particle beam R may slightly bend with respect to the reference trajectory TL1 due to the influence of a fine adjustment by the electromagnets 4 as shown in
As shown in
A local shield 40 (first shield member), an intermediate shield member 41 (second shield member), and a local shield member 42 (second shield member) are provided between the target disposition portion 30 and the accelerator 2. The material of each shield member may be any material as long as the material has a shielding property against radiation, and for example, concrete, lead, iron, polyethylene, boron, or the like may be adopted.
The local shield 40 is a shield member that shields radiation around the target 10. The local shield 40 is provided on the wall surface 103a on the accelerator chamber 101 side of the partition wall 103. As shown in
Here, when the target 10 is irradiated with the particle beam R, radiation is generated from the target 10 toward the accelerator chamber 101 side. The radiation is a neutron ray bounced off the target 10, a gamma ray that is secondarily generated, and the like. The radiation is shielded by the local shield 40. However, radiation RD1 shown in
As shown in
The intermediate shield member 41 includes a first wall portion 41A and a second wall portion 41B disposed to sandwich the transport path 9 in a horizontal direction (horizontal direction perpendicular to the emission direction D1). The intermediate shield member 41 is movable or removable with respect to an installation position. Namely, each of the wall portions 41A and 41B is movable (refer to an imaginary line) or removable from the installation position indicated by a solid line in
For example, each of the wall portions 41A and 41B has a half-split structure, and may be joined without a gap by aligning joint surfaces 41a (refer to
The local shield member 42 is disposed at a position closer to the accelerator 2 to locally protect the accelerator 2 between the target disposition portion 30 and the accelerator 2. Namely, the local shield member 42 is provided at a position closer to the accelerator 2 than to the target disposition portion 30 in the emission direction D1. In
Next, actions and effects of the neutron ray generating apparatus 1 and the neutron ray therapy facility 100 according to the present embodiment will be described.
First, a neutron ray therapy facility 200 according to a comparative example will be described with reference to
On the other hand, in the neutron ray generating apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment, the accelerator 2 and the target disposition portion 30 are disposed on the reference line SL1 of the transport path 9. In such disposition, the size of the entirety of the apparatus can be reduced compared to disposition in which the trajectory of the particle beam R from the accelerator 2 is greatly bent as shown in
The transport path 9 may include a first portion 9A (refer to
The connecting part 33 between the transport path 9 and the accelerator 2 may be disposed to overlap the reference line SL1. In this case, the particle beam R emitted from the connecting part 33 of the accelerator 2 can travel straight toward the target 10 along the reference line SL1. For that reason, the number of components for bending the particle beam R, such as a bending electromagnet, can be reduced.
The shield members 41 and 42 may be movable or removable with respect to the installation positions. In this case, since the shield members 41 and 42 are movable or removable from the installation positions during maintenance, maintainability around the installation positions is improved.
The accelerator 2 may emit the particle beam R using a radio frequency. In this case, since different types of particles are less likely to be mixed in the particle beam R, the quality of the neutron ray N with which the patient is irradiated can be improved. In addition, the need for a bending electromagnet or the like for sorting different types of particles can be eliminated. In more detail, in a direct current (DC) accelerator, not only H+ but also H+2 is mixed into the particle beam R. In order to discriminate such mixed particles, the discrimination needs to be performed using a difference between mass-to-charge ratio by providing the bending electromagnet 201 as shown in
The local shield member 42 may be disposed at a position closer to the accelerator 2 to locally protect the accelerator 2 between the target disposition portion 30 and the accelerator 2. In this case, the local shield member 42 can locally protect the accelerator 2 by narrowing down a range to be protected in the accelerator 2. Accordingly, the certainty of protection can be improved with a small amount of the shield material.
The intermediate shield member 41 may be disposed at a position closer to the target disposition portion 30 between the target disposition portion 30 and the accelerator 2. In this case, the intermediate shield member 41 can shield radiation leaking from the local shield 40 in a preliminary stage before the radiation spreads in the chamber.
The neutron ray therapy facility 100 includes: the accelerator 2 that emits the particle beam R; the target disposition portion 30 that disposes the target 10 that is irradiated with the particle beam R to generate the neutron ray N; and the transport path 9 that transports the particle beam R between the accelerator 2 and the target disposition portion 30. The accelerator 2 and the target disposition portion 30 are disposed on the reference line SL1 of the transport path 9. The local shield 40 that shields radiation and the shield members 41 and 42 that shield the radiation and that is disposed to be spaced apart from the local shield 40 toward the accelerator 2 side are provided between the target disposition portion 30 and the accelerator 2.
According to the neutron ray therapy facility 100, the same actions and effects as those of the neutron ray generating apparatus 1 described above can be obtained.
The present disclosure is not limited to the above-described embodiment.
For example, the system configurations of the neutron ray generating apparatus 1 and the neutron ray therapy facility 100 described above are merely examples, and can be changed as appropriate.
For example, the reference trajectory may not be a perfect straight line as shown in
In the transport path 9, the reference line SL1 of the first portion 9A close to the target disposition portion 30 overlaps the accelerator 2. For example, even in a mode where a portion of the transport path 9 on a side closer to the accelerator 2 is bent with respect to a portion of the transport path 9 on a side closer to the target, the reference line SL1 (of an extension line) on the side closer to the target may overlap the accelerator 2, and in this case as well, shielding can be effectively performed.
It should be understood that the invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, but may be modified into various forms on the basis of the spirit of the invention. Additionally, the modifications are included in the scope of the invention.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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2021-057346 | Mar 2021 | JP | national |
This is a bypass continuation of International PCT Application No. PCT/JP2022/014060, filed on Mar. 24, 2022, which claims priority to Japanese Patent Application No. 2021-057346, filed on Mar. 30, 2021, which are incorporated by reference herein in their entirety.
Number | Date | Country | |
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Parent | PCT/JP2022/014060 | Mar 2022 | US |
Child | 18474225 | US |