Pion radiotherapy at LAMPF

Clinical investigations of pi meson radiotherapy were conducted by the Cancer Research and Treatment Center of the University of New Mexico and the Los Alamos National Laboratory from 1974 until 1982. Two hundred and thirty patients have been treated for a variety of locally advanced primary and metastatic neoplasms. One hundred and ninety-six patients have been followed for a minimum of 18 months. Crude survival data range from 11% for unresectable pancreatic carcinoma to 82% for Stages C and D1 adenocarcinoma of the prostate. Acute tolerance of normal tissues is approximately 4500 pion rad in 36 fractions over 7 weeks. Severe chronic reactions have appeared with increasing frequency after doses in excess of 4000 pion rad.