Radioisotope Skin Patch With Holmium Coating for Localized Radiotherapy
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current skin cancer treatments, such as surgery, radiation therapy, and chemical therapies, often result in high recurrence rates, are invasive, costly, and require multiple visits, and can cause significant side effects, especially for sensitive areas or patients with health issues.
Innovation Solution
A skin patch containing a uniform layer of a radioactive isotope, such as holmium-166, deposited on a flexible substrate, which emits beta-particles to treat skin cancer, providing a localized and controlled radiation dose without deep penetration, reducing the need for surgery and minimizing side effects.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If surgical excision is used to treat skin cancer, then the lesion can be completely removed and examined, but the procedure is invasive, expensive, and requires skin grafts for sensitive areas
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the radioactive isotope layer from the treatment system, allowing it to be applied topically to the skin surface. The holmium-166 isotope is deposited as a thin film that can be placed directly on the lesion, eliminating the need for surgical incision and tissue removal while still achieving complete treatment of the cancerous cells through localized beta radiation
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies local quality by concentrating the radioactive holmium-166 isotope specifically at the treatment site where skin cancer is present. The isotope layer is deposited only on the affected area, providing high-dose radiation locally to the tumor while surrounding healthy tissue receives minimal exposure, thus achieving complete lesion removal without the invasiveness of surgery
2Object-affected harmful factors
If X-ray radiation therapy is used to treat skin cancer, then surgery can be avoided, but the treatment requires multiple sessions, exposes healthy tissue to high doses, and is expensive
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-activating the holmium-166 isotope through neutron irradiation before application to the patient. The isotope is produced in a nuclear reactor, allowing the therapeutic radiation source to be prepared in advance and then applied in a single topical treatment session, eliminating the need for multiple X-ray therapy visits
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces holmium-166 as an intermediary substance that converts neutron radiation into localized beta radiation. The isotope acts as a mediator that can be activated externally in a reactor, then applied topically to deliver the therapeutic effect, avoiding the need for repeated external beam radiation exposure to healthy tissues
3Manufacturing precision
If a uniform isotope layer is deposited on the substrate, then the radiation dose is precisely controlled, but the manufacturing process requires high precision
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces mechanical deposition methods with physical vapor deposition or sputtering techniques to create the holmium-166 isotope layer. These processes use physical fields (thermal energy or plasma) rather than mechanical contact to deposit the isotope, achieving uniform thin films with precise thickness control while simplifying the manufacturing process and reducing the risk of contamination
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies parameter changes by controlling the deposition conditions (temperature, pressure, deposition rate) to optimize the uniformity and thickness of the holmium-166 isotope layer. By adjusting these parameters, the manufacturing process achieves precise control over the radiation dose while maintaining ease of fabrication through standard thin-film deposition techniques
Data Source
AI summary
A novel treatment method is disclosed, wherein a patch configured to be placed on a patient's skin is activated, before placement, to deliver localized radiotherapy to a diseased area of the skin. The disclosed devices and methods minimize or prevent collateral damage to the neighboring tissues. In most cases, the disclosed devices and methods include coating a contoured, solid, flexible or conformal substrate with one or more lanthanide elements and then activating (e.g. neutron irradiation) the elements such that its resulting radioisotope emits beta-particles into the diseased skin surface when applied to the patient's skin. Novel processes are described for fabricating and irradiating the lanthanide-based skin patch, for example a holmium-based skin patch.