Global Collaborations: The European Council for Nuclear Research (CERN) Perspective
Abstract:
The European Council for Nuclear Research (CERN) was founded by 12 European countries in 1954 as one of Europe's first joint ventures. CERN's primary mission is to perform world-class research in fundamental particle physics research and its laboratory on the Franco-Swiss border near Geneva has both constructed and operated numerous ground-breaking particle accelerators and associated experiments throughout its 70-year history. Education and training, international collaboration, and technology development are also important complementing and facilitating parts of the organization's mission, and CERN is committed to identifying and making available opportunities for the dissemination and societal use of its results. In particular, the application of CERN's expertise and unique competencies in particle accelerators, detectors, and computing to the medical domain represents one of the most important opportunities in terms of potential impact on society. In this chapter, we describe CERN's experience and strategy within international engagement in the fields of particle and medical physics and summarize CERN's involvement in enhancing international collaborations for medical physicists.NOVEL HOLLOW CORE OPTICAL FIBRE-BASED RADIATION SENSING TECHNIQUE FOR MEDICAL APPLICATIONS AND EXTREME ENVIRONMENTS
Abstract:
As part of our search for radiation-hard techniques for beam profile monitoring, we tested a novel method based on hollow-core optical fibres. These fibres, filled with scintillating gases, combine exceptional radiation tolerance with the inherent radiation hardness of the gases. We tested this new technique at the CLEAR accelerator at CERN, demonstrating its potential for beam diagnostics. The standard deviation of the CLEAR electron beam transverse profile was successfully measured to be 1.15 mm ± 0.02 mm, close to the width of 1.30 mm ± 0.07 mm obtained from a YAG screen. No loss of signal was observed after the fibre received a dose of 0.915 MGy. The technique shows particular promise for FLASH therapy, where it could offer significant improvements in reliability and functionality compared to current instrumentation.Spatially fractionated radiotherapy with very high energy electron pencil beam scanning
Abstract:
Objective. To evaluate spatially fractionated radiation therapy (SFRT) for very-high-energy electrons (VHEEs) delivered with pencil beam scanning. Approach. Radiochromic film was irradiated at the CERN linear electron accelerator for research using 194 MeV electrons with a step-and-shoot technique, moving films within a water tank. Peak-to-valley dose ratios (PVDRs), depths of convergence (PVDR ⩽ 1.1), peak doses, and valley doses assessed SFRT dose distribution quality. A Monte Carlo (MC) model of the pencil beams was developed using TOPAS and applied to a five-beam VHEE SFRT treatment for a canine glioma patient, compared to a clinical 6 MV VMAT plan. The plans were evaluated based on dose-volume histograms, mean dose, and maximum dose to the planning target volume (PTV) and organs at risks (OARs). Main results. Experimental PVDR values were maximized at 15.5 ± 0.1 at 12 mm depth for 5 mm spot spacing. A DOC of 76.5, 70.7, and 56.6 mm was found for 5, 4, and 3 mm beamlet spacings, respectively. MC simulations and experiments showed good agreement, with maximum relative dose differences of 2% in percentage depth dose curves and less than 3% in beam profiles. Simulated PVDR values reached 180 ± 4, potentially achievable with reduced leakage dose. VHEE SFRT plans for the canine glioma patient showed a decrease in mean dose (>16%) to OARs while increasing the PTV mean dose by up to 15%. Lowering beam energy enhanced PTV dose homogeneity and reduced OAR maximum doses. Significance. The presented work demonstrates that pencil beam scanning SFRT with VHEEs could treat deep-seated tumors such as head and neck cancer or lung lesions, though small beam size and leakage dose may limit the achievable PVDR.Access to diagnostic imaging and radiotherapy technologies for patients with cancer in the Baltic countries, eastern Europe, central Asia, and the Caucasus: a comprehensive analysis
Abstract:
Background: Only 10–40% of patients with cancer in low-income and middle-income countries were able to access curative or palliative radiotherapy in 2015. We aimed to assess the current status of diagnostic imaging and radiotherapy services in the Baltic countries, eastern Europe, central Asia, and the Caucasus by collecting and analysing local data.
Methods: This Access to Radiotherapy (ART) comprehensive analysis used data from 12 countries: the three Baltic countries (Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania), two countries in eastern Europe (Moldova and Ukraine), four countries in central Asia (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan), and three countries in the Caucasus (Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia), referred to here as the ART countries. We were not able to obtain engagement from Turkmenistan. The primary outcome was to update the extent of shortfalls in the availability of diagnostic imaging and radiotherapy technologies and radiotherapy human resources for patients with cancer in former Soviet Union countries. Following the methods of previous similar studies, we developed three questionnaires—targeted towards radiation oncologists, regulatory authorities, and researchers—requesting detailed information on the availability of these resources. Authors from participating countries sent two copies of the appropriate questionnaire to each of 107 identified institutions and coordinated data collection at the national level. Questionnaires were distributed in English and Russian and responses in both languages were accepted. Two virtual meetings held on May 30 and June 1, 2022, were followed by an in-person workshop held in Almaty, Kazakhstan, in September, 2022, attended by representatives from all participating countries, to discuss and further validate the data submitted up to this point. The data were collected on a dedicated web page, developed by the International Cancer Expert Corps, and were then extracted and analysed.
Findings: Data were collected between May 10 and Nov 30, 2022. 81 (76%) of the 107 institutions contacted, representing all 12 ART countries, submitted 167 completed questionnaires. The Baltic countries, which are defined as high-income countries, had more diagnostic imaging equipment and radiotherapy human resources (eg, Latvia [1·74] and Lithuania [1·47] have a much higher number of radiation oncologists per 100 000 population than the other ART countries, all of which had <1 radiation oncologist per 100 000 population) and greater radiotherapy technological capacities (higher numbers of linear accelerators and, similar to Georgia, high total external beam radiotherapy capacity) than the other ART countries, as well as high cancer detection rates (Latvia 311 cases per 100 000 population, Lithuania 292, and Estonia 288 vs, for example, 178 in Armenia, 144 in Ukraine, and 72 in Kazakhstan) and low cancer mortality-to-cancer incidence ratios (Estonia 0·43, Latvia 0·49, and Lithuania 0·48; lower than all but Kazakhstan [0·41]). The highest cancer mortality-to-cancer incidence ratios were reported by Moldova (0·71) and Georgia (0·74).
Interpretation: Our findings show that the number of cancer cases, availability of diagnostic imaging equipment, radiation oncologists and radiotherapy capacity, and cancer mortality-to-cancer incidence ratios all vary substantially across the countries studied, with the three high-income, well resourced Baltic countries performing better in all metrics than the included countries in eastern Europe, central Asia, and the Caucasus. These data highlight the challenges faced by many countries in this study, and might help to justify increased investment of financial, human, and technological resources, with the aim to improve cancer treatment outcomes.
Funding: US Department of Energy's National Nuclear Security Administration's Office of Radiological Security.