System for radiation therapy

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12138486-B2
Application number	US-202017762304-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 25, 2020
Priority date	Sep 25, 2019
Publication date	Nov 12, 2024
Grant date	Nov 12, 2024

Abstract

A medical system for providing radiotherapy is disclosed. The system comprises a particle accelerator configured to produce a radiation beam and irradiate at least a part of a subject with the radiation beam. The particle accelerator comprises a plasma zone comprising or configured to receive a plasma, and at least one beam source configured to provide an excitation beam along an axis through the plasma zone. The medical system is configured to provide a plurality of charged particles in the plasma in a region that propagates through the plasma zone behind the excitation beam such that the plurality of charged particles are accelerated to produce a radiation beam comprising the plurality of charged particles with a broadband energy distribution, wherein: at least part or all of the energy distribution of the radiation beam is substantially exponential or power-law; the radiation beam delivers 75% or more of a dose of the charged particles at and below 2 g/cm 2 ; and/or the energy beam has an energy or energy distribution in the range from 10 eV to 10 MeV.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A medical system for providing radiotherapy, the system comprising a particle accelerator configured to produce a radiation beam for irradiating at least a part of a subject, the particle accelerator comprising:
a plasma zone comprising or configured to receive a plasma; and
at least one beam source configured to provide an excitation beam through the plasma zone; wherein
the medical system is configured to provide a plurality of charged particles in the plasma in a region that propagates through the plasma zone behind the excitation beam such that the plurality of charged particles are accelerated and usable to produce the radiation beam with a broadband energy distribution, wherein at least one of:
at least part or all of the energy distribution of the radiation beam is exponential or power-law;
particle accelerator is configured such that the radiation beam provides a dose-depth profile in which 75% or more of a dose of the radiation beam is delivered at and below 2 g/cm −2 ; and
particle accelerator is configured such that the radiation beam has an energy or energy distribution in a range from 10 eV to 10 MeV.

2. The system of claim 1 comprising an energy distribution control system for at least one of: selecting and adjusting the dose-depth profile or energy distribution of the radiation beam.

3. The system of claim 2 , wherein the energy distribution control system comprises a controller configured to control the beam source to select or vary at least one parameter of the excitation beam to at least one of: select and adjust the dose-depth dose depth profile or energy distribution of the radiation beam.

4. The system of claim 3 , wherein the at least one parameter of the excitation beam comprises one or more of: energy, duration, focus, beam size, beam wavelength, beam shape, and beam power density.

5. The system of claim 2 , wherein the energy distribution control system comprises a selection collimator configured to select one or more of: a portion of the radiation beam and a portion of the charged particles to thereby select one or more of: the dose-depth profile and energy or energy distribution or dose-depth profile of the radiation beam.

6. The system of claim 2 , wherein the energy distribution control system comprises a focusing system configured to focus the radiation beam to vary or select the charged particles that are incident on the subject from the plurality of charged particles dependent on the energy of the charged particles.

7. The system of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of charged particles comprises electrons.

8. The system of claim 1 , wherein the particle accelerator is, or comprises, a Wakefield Accelerator, such as a plasma wakefield accelerator (PWFA) or laser wakefield accelerator (LWFA).

9. The system of claim 1 , comprising a gas jet configured to provide a plasma or gas from which the plasma is formed into the plasma zone.

10. The system of claim 1 , wherein the particle accelerator comprises a target material and a first laser configured to focus a first laser beam onto the target material, and wherein at least one parameter of the target material is selected or varied to determine characteristics of the radiation beam and the at least one parameter of the target material comprises at least one of: physical state, thickness, density, material, composition, structure, temperature and shape.

11. The system of claim 10 , wherein one or more of: the first laser and the beam source is configured to operate in a pulsed mode at between 1 Hz and 1 MHz.

12. The system of claim 1 , wherein the beam source is a laser and the laser is a fibre laser.

13. The system of claim 1 , wherein the radiation beam has an energy distribution that is exponential or power-law over the range of 10 eV to 10 MeV.

14. The system of claim 1 comprising targeting means for targeting the radiation beam produced by the particle accelerator onto the subject with at least one of: a selectable focus and a selectable angle of incidence.

15. A method of treating a skin condition of a subject, the method comprising:
using the medical system of claim 1 to produce a radiation beam comprising the plurality of charged particles with a broadband energy distribution; and
irradiating a subject with the radiation beam.

16. The method of claim 15 , wherein at least one of:
the broadband energy distribution is exponential or power-law;
the method comprises using the medical system to deliver 75% or more of a dose of the charged particles at and below 2 g/cm −2 ;
and
the method comprises using the medical system to deliver the radiation beam with an energy or energy distribution in a range from 10 eV to 10 MeV.

17. The method of claim 15 , comprising providing the radiation beam at an angle of incidence to a normal of a surface of the subject of 0 degrees.

18. The method of claim 15 , wherein the skin condition comprises a tumour.

19. A method of adapting a medical radiotherapy apparatus comprising a LINAC to produce a broadband radiation beam having an energy distribution that is exponential or power-law, the method comprising fitting the apparatus with a gas jet or plasma cell for providing a plasma zone, the gas jet or plasma zone being arranged such that a plurality of charged particles are receivable in the plasma zone in a region that propagates through the plasma zone behind an excitation beam such that the plurality of charged particles are accelerated and usable to produce the radiation beam with a broadband energy distribution, wherein at least one of:
at least part or all of the energy distribution of the radiation beam is exponential or power-law;
the radiation beam delivers 75% or more of a dose of the charged particles at and below 2 g/cm −2 ; and
the radiation beam has an energy or energy distribution in a range from 10 eV to 10 MeV.

20. The method of claim 19 , wherein a particle beam output of the LINAC is directed into or through the gas jet or plasma cell to facilitate wakefield acceleration.

Assignees

• The Univ Of Strathclyde
• Univ Strathclyde

Inventors

• Delinikolas Panagiotis
• Hidding Bernhard
• Habib Fahim Ahmad

Classifications

• H05H2277/11

  Radiotherapy · CPC title

• H05H1/54 Primary

  Plasma accelerators · CPC title

• A61N2005/1087

  Ions; Protons · CPC title

• H05H2245/34

  Skin treatments, e.g. disinfection or wound treatment · CPC title

• H05H15/00 Primary

  Methods or devices for acceleration of charged particles not otherwise provided for {, e.g. wakefield accelerators} · CPC title