When Was Cobalt-60 First Used In Medicine?

October 27, 1951.
On October 27, 1951, the world’s first cancer treatment with Cobalt-60 radiation took place at Victoria Hospital. This marked an important milestone for both the fight against cancer and Canada’s emergence as a leader in the field of radiotherapy.

How was cobalt-60 first used medically?

Cobalt therapy is the medical use of gamma rays from the radioisotope cobalt-60 to treat conditions such as cancer. Beginning in the 1950s, cobalt-60 was widely used in external beam radiotherapy (teletherapy) machines, which produced a beam of gamma rays which was directed into the patient’s body to kill tumor tissue.

Is cobalt-60 used in medicine?

What is it used for? Co-60 is used medically for radiation therapy as implants and as an external source of radiation exposure.

Who invented the cancer treatment using cobalt-60?

In 1951, University of Saskatchewan medical physicist Dr. Harold Johns and his graduate students became the first researchers in the world to successfully treat a cancer patient using cobalt-60 radiation therapy.

Why is cobalt-60 used to treat cancer?

The cobalt-60 system is designed to deliver radiation in the shape of a sphere. To cover irregularly shaped tumors, several of these radiation spheres are combined to best mimic the tumor’s shape.

What cancers are treated by cobalt-60?

Cobalt 60 (60Co) is often the ideal mode of radiation for treating laryngeal cancer.

What disease can cobalt-60 Treat?

Medical-grade Cobalt-60 is used worldwide to battle cancer and for radiation therapy for the treatment of complex brain conditions.

Is cobalt-60 natural or man made?

Cobalt-60 is not found in nature. It is a synthetic radioactive isotope made by neutron activation of Cobalt-59. Cobalt-60 is produced off site in nuclear reactors and transported in special shipping containers (casks) to the sterilization facility.

How long does cobalt-60 stay in the body?

Beta particles are generally absorbed in the skin and do not pass through the entire body. Gamma radiation, however, can penetrate the body. The time required for a radioactive substance to lose 50 percent of its radioactivity by decay is known as the half-life. The half-life of cobalt-60 is about 5.3 years.

Why is cobalt-60 used to sterilize medical equipment?

Cold Process Sterilization
The reason why Cobalt-60 is the most suitable for radiation processing is because of the relatively high energy of their gamma rays and fairly long half-life which is 5.27 years.

What happens if you inhale cobalt-60?

* Cobalt may cause an asthma-like allergy. Future exposure can cause asthma attacks with shortness of breath, wheezing, cough, and/or chest tightness. * Cobalt may affect the heart, thyroid, liver and kidneys. * Repeated exposure to Cobalt dust can cause scarring of the lungs (fibrosis) even if no symptoms are noticed.

What kind of cancer does cobalt use?

From the University of Texas M. D. Anderson Hospital and Tumor Institute. Cobalt-60 units supply gamma radiation of two monochromatic wavelengths (1.17 and 1.33 mev), and the soft beta radiation is easily filtered out by approximately 0.16 mm of steel.

How was breast cancer treated in the 1960’s?

The vogue in the 1950s and 1960s was the idea that “if it comes back then it means you didn’t do a big enough operation.” In that era, increasingly radical surgery was carried out, involving removing not only the breast but also all the underlying chest muscles and lymph nodes under the arm.

Which isotope can cure cancer?

An isotope of cobalt i.e. cobalt-60 is used in the treatment of cancer.

What isotopes cure blood cancer?

It has also been used to treat a blood disorder called polycythemia vera and certain types of leukemia, but it is not commonly used anymore. Phosphorus P 32 gives off radiation that damages the DNA in a cell, which can cause the cell to die.

What’s the most radioactive element?

Polonium. Because it is a naturally-occurring element that releases a huge amount of energy, many sources cite polonium as the most radioactive element.

How much cobalt-60 is in a Gamma Knife?

192- 201 cobalt-60
The Gamma Knife Unit
The Gamma Knife contains 192- 201 cobalt-60 sources of approximately 30 curies each, placed in a circular array in a heavily shielded unit. The unit directs gamma radiation very precisely to a target point.

How much does cobalt-60 cost?

Other Options

Can cobalt-60 destroy bacteria?

The gamma irradiation process uses Cobalt 60 radiation to kill microorganisms on a variety of different products in a specially designed cell. Gamma radiation is generated by the decay of the radioisotope Cobalt 60, with the resultant high energy photons being an effective sterilant.

How does cobalt affect the human body?

It can harm the eyes, skin, heart, and lungs. Exposure to cobalt may cause cancer. Workers may be harmed from exposure to cobalt and cobalt-containing products. The level of harm depends upon the dose, duration, and work being done.

What are the benefits of cobalt-60?

The advantages of Co/sup 60/ therapy over conventional x-ray therapy, stemming from the fact that in the lst instance energy absorption within the tissues is by the Compton effect and in the 2nd case by the photoelectric effect, are: (1) increased skin tolerance, (2) reduced bone absorption, (3) increase in depth dose,