Hossam Donya, Nouf Mobarak Alzahrani, Abdulla Abdulsalam, Muhammed Umer
{"title":"Boron neutron capture therapy: a promising radiation treatment modality.","authors":"Hossam Donya, Nouf Mobarak Alzahrani, Abdulla Abdulsalam, Muhammed Umer","doi":"10.1007/s00411-025-01134-2","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) is a progressive medical technique that combines the use of boron compounds and neutron radiation to preferentially destroy cancer cells while minimizing, but not entirely eliminating, damage to surrounding healthy tissues. This therapy relies on <sup>10</sup>B, delivered via specific compounds, capturing neutrons and undergoing a nuclear reaction. This capture leads to the emission of high-energy alpha particles and lithium ions, which selectively damage the boron-loaded tumour cells, ultimately leading to their destruction. The key advantage of BNCT lies in its ability to deliver a highly localized and targeted treatment to cancer cells, and sparing healthy tissues from significant radiation damage due to the extremely short range of the reaction products. This makes it particularly suitable for treating certain types of tumours located in sensitive or critical areas where conventional radiation therapy is less effective or poses higher risks. In BNCT, the neutron source is a crucial component of the treatment process. Reactors and accelerators have traditionally been used as neutron sources in BNCT, while recent studies have also explored neutron generators. The success of BNCT depends on the development of effective boron delivery agents and optimized neutron sources, with recent advances in both areas expanding its clinical potential for treating challenging tumours. Recent advances in nanotechnology have introduced carbon dots as promising boron nanocarriers for BNCT. These carbon dots offer high biocompatibility and unique optical properties. Additionally, they have the ability to cross the blood-brain barrier, enabling targeted brain tumour delivery and imaging. Recent progress in molecular biology and imaging technologies is enhancing our knowledge of tumour characteristics and facilitating the development of boron compounds with greater selectivity for cancer cells. The present overview presents the historical development of the two primary BNCT components, the boron compound and neutron source, as well as their potential for future applications.</p>","PeriodicalId":21002,"journal":{"name":"Radiation and Environmental Biophysics","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.5000,"publicationDate":"2025-06-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Radiation and Environmental Biophysics","FirstCategoryId":"93","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s00411-025-01134-2","RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q3","JCRName":"BIOLOGY","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) is a progressive medical technique that combines the use of boron compounds and neutron radiation to preferentially destroy cancer cells while minimizing, but not entirely eliminating, damage to surrounding healthy tissues. This therapy relies on 10B, delivered via specific compounds, capturing neutrons and undergoing a nuclear reaction. This capture leads to the emission of high-energy alpha particles and lithium ions, which selectively damage the boron-loaded tumour cells, ultimately leading to their destruction. The key advantage of BNCT lies in its ability to deliver a highly localized and targeted treatment to cancer cells, and sparing healthy tissues from significant radiation damage due to the extremely short range of the reaction products. This makes it particularly suitable for treating certain types of tumours located in sensitive or critical areas where conventional radiation therapy is less effective or poses higher risks. In BNCT, the neutron source is a crucial component of the treatment process. Reactors and accelerators have traditionally been used as neutron sources in BNCT, while recent studies have also explored neutron generators. The success of BNCT depends on the development of effective boron delivery agents and optimized neutron sources, with recent advances in both areas expanding its clinical potential for treating challenging tumours. Recent advances in nanotechnology have introduced carbon dots as promising boron nanocarriers for BNCT. These carbon dots offer high biocompatibility and unique optical properties. Additionally, they have the ability to cross the blood-brain barrier, enabling targeted brain tumour delivery and imaging. Recent progress in molecular biology and imaging technologies is enhancing our knowledge of tumour characteristics and facilitating the development of boron compounds with greater selectivity for cancer cells. The present overview presents the historical development of the two primary BNCT components, the boron compound and neutron source, as well as their potential for future applications.
期刊介绍:
This journal is devoted to fundamental and applied issues in radiation research and biophysics. The topics may include:
Biophysics of ionizing radiation: radiation physics and chemistry, radiation dosimetry, radiobiology, radioecology, biophysical foundations of medical applications of radiation, and radiation protection.
Biological effects of radiation: experimental or theoretical work on molecular or cellular effects; relevance of biological effects for risk assessment; biological effects of medical applications of radiation; relevance of radiation for biosphere and in space; modelling of ecosystems; modelling of transport processes of substances in biotic systems.
Risk assessment: epidemiological studies of cancer and non-cancer effects; quantification of risk including exposures to radiation and confounding factors
Contributions to these topics may include theoretical-mathematical and experimental material, as well as description of new techniques relevant for the study of these issues. They can range from complex radiobiological phenomena to issues in health physics and environmental protection.