Particle physics is used to challenge our understanding of the universe and researchers at Europe's science lab are trying to upend the limits of cancer treatment.
The physicists here are trying to find ways to expand the reach of cancer radiation therapy and take on tumors that would otherwise be fatal.
Roberto Corsini stands next to a large, linear particle accelerator consisting of a 40-meter metal beam with tubes packed in aluminum foil at one end and a vast array of measurement instruments.
He told Agence France-Presse that the research here is aimed at creating very high energy beams of electrons that eventually could be used to fight cancer.
They are researching a way to accelerate electrons to the energies that are needed to treat deep-seated tumors.
The idea is to combine the high-energy electrons with a new and promising treatment method called FLASH.
The current approach requires the radiation to be delivered in minutes, but this method requires it to be delivered in a few hundred milliseconds.
This has been shown to cause less damage to the surrounding tissue than the targeted tumors.
Benjamin Fisch, a knowledge transfer officer, said that traditional radiation therapy creates some damage.
The effect of the brief but intense FLASH treatment is to reduce the toxicity to healthy tissue while still damaging cancer cells.
The first patients to use FLASH were provided with low-energy electron beams of around 6-10 MeV.
The beams can't penetrate deep, meaning they're only effective on superficial tumors.
It is possible to use the method for more hard-to-reach tumors, thanks to the collaboration between the Lausanne University Hospital and the CERN physicists.
Today's deep-lying cancer tumors are often considered to be a death sentence.
The ones that we don't cure at the moment will be the targets, according to Professor Jean Bourhis.
It could be a game-changer for certain types of cancer.
The hope is that the FLASH method could make it possible to remove tumors in the brain or other vital organs.
At least there will be a new opportunity for more cures if it works, Bourhis said.
The compactness of the accelerator is one challenge.
It takes 20 meters to push the electrons up to the required energy level, and another 20 meters to condition, measure, and deliver the beam.
CERN had the know-how to accelerate in a smaller space, according to Corsini.
A machine that is 10 meters overall will be the goal of the prototype being designed.
It can be put into a hospital without having to build a whole building.
The prototype is scheduled to be built in February of next year, and patient trials could begin in the year 2025.
Agence France- Presse.
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