An open-hardware radiotherapy machine built for unreliable power and dust
Design a radiotherapy machine from scratch for hospitals with patchy electricity, heat and few engineers, and publish the design so several companies can build it cheaply.
Commercial linear accelerators are built for well-staffed Western hospitals; in sub-Saharan Africa they sit idle for long stretches because of power failures, heat, and the cost of a service call. A consortium (the CERN/STFC/ICEC 'Project STELLA' work is a precedent) would specify a ruggedised, modular, remotely diagnosable machine with battery-buffered power, sealed electronics, swappable modules that a local technician can replace, and an open interface specification. The design and test data would be published so multiple manufacturers can bid; the buyer pays for uptime, not for the box.
- Most of the world has almost no cancer care · Seven in ten cancer deaths happen in low- and middle-income countries, where radiotherapy, pathology, surgery and drugs are scarce.
- Surgery and radiotherapy cure most, get least · Surgery and radiotherapy cure more people than drugs do, but attract a fraction of the research investment.
Pages like this
not linked directly; found by shared links- IdeaPay for radiotherapy machine uptime, not for the machine
Shares Elekta, Varian (Siemens Healthineers), Surgery and radiotherapy cure most, get least, Most of the world has almost no cancer care.
- IdeaRadiotherapy for everyone who needs it by 2040
Shares Elekta, Varian (Siemens Healthineers), International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC / WHO), Surgery and radiotherapy cure most, get least.
- IdeaA national repository of radiotherapy dose plans linked to outcomes
Shares Elekta, Varian (Siemens Healthineers), Surgery and radiotherapy cure most, get least, IMRT / IGRT (modern external beam).
- IdeaA Gavi-style pooled purchaser for radiotherapy equipment and service
Shares Elekta, Varian (Siemens Healthineers), Most of the world has almost no cancer care.
- IdeaCertify every oncology software product for a standard bulk data export
Shares Elekta, Varian (Siemens Healthineers).
- IdeaValidate and reimburse AI contouring and planning to expand radiotherapy capacity
Shares Elekta, Varian (Siemens Healthineers), Surgery and radiotherapy cure most, get least, IMRT / IGRT (modern external beam).
- IdeaSingle-fraction radiotherapy as the default for painful bone metastases
Shares Surgery and radiotherapy cure most, get least, Most of the world has almost no cancer care, IMRT / IGRT (modern external beam).
- IdeaMake one-week radiotherapy the default in overloaded systems
Shares Surgery and radiotherapy cure most, get least, Most of the world has almost no cancer care, IMRT / IGRT (modern external beam).