AB003. Dosimetric study of prostate cancer using boron neutron capture therapy based on the nuclear research reactor nuclear uranium reactor: Monte Carlo simulation
Abstract

AB003. Dosimetric study of prostate cancer using boron neutron capture therapy based on the nuclear research reactor nuclear uranium reactor: Monte Carlo simulation

Radhia Boumghar1,2, Mohamed Belgaid2, Tarik Segueni3, Samir Mazidi3, Bilel Sayah3

1Nuclear Medicine Department, Central Hospital of Army (HCA), Algiers, Algeria; 2Physics Faculty, University of Science and Technology Houari Boumediène (USTHB), Algiers, Algeria; 3Physics and Nuclear Applications Division, Draria Nuclear Research Center (CRND), Algiers, Algeria

Correspondence to: Radhia Boumghar, PhD. Nuclear Medicine Department, Central Hospital of Army (HCA), PB 244, Ain Naâdja, 16208 Algiers, Algeria; Physics Faculty, University of Science and Technology Houari Boumediène (USTHB), PB 31, Bab Ezzouar, 16111 Algiers, Algeria. Email: boumghar.radia@gmail.com.

Background: Boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) has been approved its forcefulness for the treatment of the brain, the liver, as well as for hepatoma and mesothelioma. This efficiency is due to the preferential accumulation of 10B in cancer cells and to the use of an adequate neutron beam. Recent works have investigated the efficacy of new molecules like the prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) as a boron carrier for its application in the treatment of prostate cancer (PCa) based on BNCT. In the same context and with the aim of extending BNCT to the treatment of PCa, this work focuses on the dosimetric study of the feasibility of using BNCT for the PCa treatment using an optimized epithermal neutron beam based on nuclear uranium reactor (NUR) research reactor in a later study.

Methods: This study uses the Monte Carlo calculation code (MCNP5) and the Medical Internal Radiation Dosimetry (MIRD) phantom. For this study, the MIRD phantom has been modified by adding an ellipsoid representing the prostate, measuring 5 cm in length, 4.5 cm in width, and 3.5 cm in height. However, the rectum has a length of 12 cm and a diameter of 6 cm. The channel No. 5 neutron beam was used after an optimization of a beam shaping assembly (BSA) and the elimination of the thermal column in order to ensure a suitable epithermal beam for the. In this work, the assumed prescribed dose to the prostate is 60 Gy. Therefore, full bladder and empty rectum were also supposed. The dosimetric evaluation of the received dose by the bladder wall, rectum wall, and testis was carried out assuming a boron concentration of 65 ppm in the prostate and 18 ppm in the healthy tissue. The assumed prescribed dose to the prostate in this work is 60 Gy, with the assumption of a full bladder and empty rectum. The dosimetric evaluation of the received dose by the bladder wall, the rectum wall, and the testis was carried out with a boron concentration of 65 ppm in the prostate and 18 ppm in the healthy tissue, using appropriate material composition and neutron Kerma coefficients for each organ.

Results: The received doses by the bladder, bladder wall, rectum, rectum wall, and testis were 3.40, 2.48, 2.85, 2.16, and 1.95 Gy, respectively. Furthermore, these doses are much lower than those obtained in radiotherapy based on X-rays.

Conclusions: This study shows the ability of BNCT to treat PCa with a significant sparing of the healthy tissues and provides an effective therapy in the presence of a selective Boron transporter for the PCa cells.

Keywords: Boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT); nuclear uranium reactor (NUR); Monte Carlo calculation code (MCNP5); Medical Internal Radiation Dosimetry (MIRD); prostate

Acknowledgments

The authors acknowledge Dr. Tahar Zidi from the Algerian Atomic Energy Commission (COMENA) for his precious help with regard to the MCNP5 software.

Footnote

Funding: None.

Conflicts of Interest: All authors have completed the ICMJE uniform disclosure form (available at https://tro.amegroups.com/article/view/10.21037/tro-25-ab003/coif). The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare.

Ethical Statement: The authors are accountable for all aspects of the work in ensuring that questions related to the accuracy or integrity of any part of the work are appropriately investigated and resolved. Ethical approval was not required for this study because it did not involve human or animal participants, nor did it entail the use of personal data.

Open Access Statement: This is an Open Access article distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0), which permits the noncommercial replication and distribution of the article with the strict proviso that no changes or edits are made and the original work is properly cited (including links to both the formal publication through the relevant DOI and the license). See: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/.

doi: 10.21037/tro-25-ab003
Cite this abstract as: Boumghar R, Belgaid M, Segueni T, Mazidi S, Sayah B. AB003. Dosimetric study of prostate cancer using boron neutron capture therapy based on the nuclear research reactor nuclear uranium reactor: Monte Carlo simulation. Ther Radiol Oncol 2025;9:AB003.

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