Is it possible to irradiate only one lymph node with X-rays?
2021.03.02 note
In our mice, the lymph nodes of the whole body swell up to about 10 mm in diameter (the size of human lymph nodes).
The figure shows that two lymph nodes in the axillary region can be irradiated with X-rays >8 Gy (lethal dose for whole-body irradiation) through a hole in a lead plate.
It is not possible for ethical reasons to resect lymph nodes from patients during the course of radiotherapy for metastatic lymph nodes or carry out histopathological examinations over time. Thus, the effect of radiation on the histopathology of metastatic lymph nodes has remained unclear.
This experimental system can be used not only as a model for clinical trials but also to elucidate the X-ray irradiation-induced abscopal effect, in which the anti-tumor effect is confirmed even outside the X-ray irradiated area.