A laser pulse slams into a target and, in a fraction of a second, accelerates a beam of ions to energies high enough to treat deep-seated tumours. This project aims to turn that laboratory phenomenon into a practical technology for cancer therapy. Current particle therapy centres rely on conventional radiofrequency accelerators, which are large and expensive, limiting their use worldwide. Laser-driven ion sources could shrink the equipment and cut costs, making proton and carbon beam therapy far more accessible. The approach also offers advantages unavailable today: the ability to switch between different ion species on demand, synchronised proton and x-ray pulses for enhanced diagnosis, and on-site production of isotopes for PET scanning. If successful, this research could transform how high-energy ion beams are delivered in hospitals, replacing room-sized accelerators with compact laser systems. The work is a step toward a serious alternative to existing medical accelerators, not a near-term clinical tool.
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The project aims to reach an important milestone towards the development of innovative healthcare technologies: all-optical delivery of dense, high-repetition ion beams at energies above the threshold for deep-seated tumour treatment and diagnosis (~200 MeV/nucleon). Driven from an immediate impact in accelerator science, the flexibility and compactness of the planned solutions, jointly with other potential advantages of laser-based systems, could revolutionise cancer treatment methods. The extreme conditions reached during the interaction of an ultra-intense laser pulse with matter can lead, if suitably controlled, to the rapid acceleration of beams of ions with unique properties. The study of these laser-initiated acceleration mechanisms, and the characterization and optimization of the ion beams produced, have been, over the past decade, one of the most active and fruitful areas of high-field science. UK scientists have been at the forefront of the development of laser-driven ion sources. During the final stages of LIBRA, novel acceleration mechanisms have emerged, mostly based on the enormous pressure exerted by powerful laser pulses onto irradiated matter, which promise a step change in particle acceleration capabilities. A key area of application of high-current ion beams (proton and carbon) is in cancer therapy. Through a series of coordinated and interlinked activities over a 6 year period, we aim to advance laser-ion acceleration to the point at which laser-driven beams will become a serious alternative to conventional RF accelerators for medical therapy. Besides offering a reduction in cost and footprint of particle therapy centres (major factors limiting their growth worldwide), a laser-driven approach would offer a number of advantageous features currently unavailable: on-demand switching between species (H and C, with options for other light ions such Be and Li) and energy control; enhanced diagnosis, with synchronized proton and x-ray pulses, and on-site isotope production for Positron Emission Tomography. Our ambition is for UK science to play a leading role in the development of high-energy ion sources, by capitalizing on the exceptional pool of expertise available to our consortium.
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