BASIC DESIGN CONSIDERATIONS FOR A NATIONAL LABORATORY TO SUPPORT ADVANCED CLINICAL-APPLICATIONS OF ION-BEAMS

The interest toward the use of hadron accelerators in cancer radiation therapy is steadily increasing all over the world. The paper discusse s the major issues related to this subject. Accelerators and beam deli very systems should be optimized for clinical use, but should also be regarded as valuable tools for clinical studies between conventional, proton and ion treatments. Alternative engineering designs for the acc elerator are under study. The possibility of constructing a ''compact' ' proton accelerator for hospital use or a machine exploiting accelera tion of H- ions rather than protons to extract the beam by charge exch ange are discussed. Any new project should make a careful assessment o f the number of potential cases to be referred to proton treatment in the country where the facility is to be built, integrated by socio-eco nomical considerations.