Research progress of 10B concentration and distribution measurement in boron neutron capture therapy

Boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) is a dual tumor radiotherapy method combining boron-10 containing drugs and heavy ion therapy, which can kill cancer cells with almost no damage to normal cells, and achieve precise cell-scale treatment. However, the BNCT does not really enter into clinical application stage though it has been developed for nearly 70 years. The methods of measuring the concentration distribution of boron-10 containing drugs in vivo cannot meet the clinical needs, which is one of the core problems affecting the effect and safety of clinical application of BNCT. This article reviews the current methods of measuring the concentration distribution of boron-10 drugs, including the invasive estimation methods that have been used in clinical practice, the researching single photon emission tomography (SPECT) method, positron emission tomography (PET) method, nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) method, etc., and analyzes the advantages and limitations of current methods. Based on the characteristics of the low gyromagnetic ratio of the boron-10 element and the extremely short magnetic resonance transverse relaxation time, the research ideas of ultra-short echo time magnetic resonance boron-10 quantitative imaging are proposed. The feasibility of quantitative measurement of boron-10 distribution in vivo based on ultrashort echo time magnetic resonance imaging is analyzed theoretically.