Head phantom experiment and calculation for boron neutron capture therapy.

Head phantom experiments with various neutron beams and calculations were carried out in order to provide useful information for boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT). Thermal neutron beams for thermal neutron capture therapy were used for phantom experiments with various neutron collimator aperture sizes. The filtered beam neutrons of 24 and 144 keV generated with iron and silicon filters were also used to investigate the possible application of BNCT in the treatment of deep-seated cancers. Thermal neutron fluence and induced capture gamma dose distributions within the phantom were calculated with a transport code DOT 3.5 and compared with the experimental results. The results showed that the calculation used was consistent with the experimental results and provided useful information on BNCT. The filtered beam neutron may be very useful for the treatment of deep or widespread cancer, if there were a high power research reactor constructed for this purpose.