Faster and Safer? FLASH Ultra-high Dose Rate in Radiotherapy

Overview

Journal Br J Radiol

Publisher Oxford University Press

Specialty Radiology

Date 2017 Nov 28

PMID 29172684

Citations 67

Authors

Marco Durante

Elke Brauer-Krisch

Mark Hill

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Recent results from the Franco-Swiss team of Institute Curie and Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Vaudois demonstrate a remarkable sparing of normal tissue after irradiation at ultra-high dose rate (>40 Gy s). The "FLASH" radiotherapy maintains tumour control level, suggesting that ultra-high dose rate can substantially enhance the therapeutic window in radiotherapy. The results have been obtained so far only with 4-6 MeV electrons in lung and brain mouse model. Nevertheless, they have attracted a great attention for the potential clinical applications. Oxygen depletion had been discussed many years ago as a possible mechanism for reduction of the damage after exposure to ultra-high dose rate. However, the mechanism underlying the effect observed in the FLASH radiotherapy remains to be elucidated.

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