Description:
Current
State of the Art:
The
incidence of cancer is rising worldwide, with more than 11 million cases
recorded annually. Incidence is expected to increase further, driven by rising
life expectancy rates and aging global population. This is expected to increase
the demand in the radiation therapy market which is currently experiencing
technological advancements leading to more effective therapy that is precise and
commercially viable. Highly accurate and targeted radiation therapy has the
potential to replace surgery, driving the demand for radiation therapy equipment
to over $3.6 billion by 2015. Much of the future growth in the market depends
upon the availability of more effective technologies presenting an opportunity
for novel or improved radiation devices.
Disadvantages
with the Current Art:
Current
radiation devices are costly and involve high absolute levels of radioactivity
that require sophisticated shielding to form the desired radiation beam. The
beam from the radioactive source is typically large in relation to the area of
the target, and must be shielded and/or collimated with optical (or magnetic)
lenses to form the desired radiation beam. In addition, many of the current
radiation devices cannot function properly under all conditions resulting in
constraints on targets that are not practical. Furthermore, the use of radiation
therapy requires detailed attention to personnel, equipment, patient and
personnel safety, and continuing staff education.
Advantages
of Invention:
Researchers
at the Georgia Health Sciences University have developed a device
(microirradiator) for delivering high dose densities of ionizing radiation (e.g.
alpha, beta, and gamma) to small target areas. The device is constructed using a
non-radioactive conducting electrode, an insulating sheath, a radioactive
source, and a contact electrode (optional). Because of the small size, the
absolute radioactivity of the device is very low, corresponding to very high
activity density. Thus, the microirradiator is intrinsically safe to the user
while delivering localized activity and dose densities achievable only in highly
guarded and regulated facilities. In addition, the device does not require
additional external shielding and collimating is not necessary to produce a
beam. Furthermore, the developed microirradiator uses relatively inexpensive
materials and can be fabricated in a cost efficient manner.
Applications
of the developed technology include but are not limited to: radiobiological
research, radiation micro-oncology, trace analytical microinstrumentation, and
microfabrication engineering. The new concept has been demonstrated on
deposition of Ni-63, but could be extended to other sources of beta, positron,
gamma and alpha radiation, that can be electrochemically deposited. In most
cases the preparation can be optimized using a "cold" isotope, thus further
limiting the exposure during the preparation of the tool.
Patent
Status: US
Pat. Pub. No. 2010/0200771
Inventors:
William Dynan, Jiri Janata, Mira Josowicz , Wendy Kuhne, and Jennifer
Steeb
Case
Number:
GHSU 2009-032