今日のテキスト PINPOINT CANCER ATTACK

Japanese researchers have developed a promising new way to treat cancer cells. They say the technique has succeeded in shrinking tumors without harming the surrounding tissue.
Scientists at the National Institutes for Quantum and Radiological Science and Technology developed the new method. A group of researchers used a large accelerator to collide helium with bismuth, a metal, to create a substance called astatine. They combined that with a substance that tends to gather in cancer cells. The resulting agent can directly reach cancer cells, where it emits alpha rays within a 0.1 millimeter radius.
The group tested the agent on cancers in mice. Two weeks after giving them injections, the tumors in the animals were half as large. Tumors in mice without the injections tripled in size.
A major challenge with radiotherapy has been the damage caused to nearby healthy cells. The group says the new method can overcome this problem. Researchers hope to use the new technique on humans within seven years.