Radiotherapy

The controlled use of ionizing radiation for medical purposes.

Utility

Triggering Self-Healing

The beneficial effects of low radiation levels have been observed long before the Final War. Legends about places such as the Spring of Life, presumably located in Hazu Ropuru, hint at healing processes being triggered by exposure to Larevok's light.
Rilanga scientists eventually confirmed these effects in clinical studies. They found out that a controlled amount of radiation-induced cell damage triggers the release of certain hormones. Those, in turn, activate the immune system, initiate cell repairs and increase the overall metabolic activity. Consequently, the body not only heals the radiation damage but also takes care of pre-existing illnesses and injuries in the process.

Non-Invasive Imaging

When radiation passes through the examined body part, some of it is blocked by denser materials such as bones. Although it does not contribute to the healing process directly, this technique plays an important role in planning the overall therapy and observing its effects. Tumors, for example, need to be located precisely before they can be targeted with focused radiation.

Destroying Cancer Cells

High doses of ionizing radiation are not only dangerous to healthy tissue, but also to cancerous growths. This gave rise to the idea of exposing affected body regions to stronger levels of radiation. Damaging larger tumors this way turned out to facilitate surgical removal, while smaller tumors can be dissolved completely by this method.

Manufacturing

Radiation source

The primary component of the radiotherapy device, the hikruta gudmi, is a harnessed crystal fire cell that emits sufficient amounts of ionizing radiation. Usually, the fire crystals in those cells were rejected for use in other applications for exactly that reason.
Another method for obtaining suitable crystals is to "supercharge" them by leaving batches of already-charged crystals in Hazu Kalpasu during the Heat Season. However, this requires complex safety measures and success is not guaranteed due to the unpredictability of Larevok's emissions. The outcome can be anything from a complete lack of effect to the explosion of the entire batch and its surrounding area.

Shielding

Like all harnessed fire crystals, those for medical use are encased in airtight containers from which all oxygen was removed. An additional layer of lead ensures that the radiation released during the crystal's activation can only exit through the dedicated window. The oxygen is usually supplied through narrow, winding channels with a matte surface. This reduces the risk that the highly-energetic photons escape through the oxygen valve.

Focusing Lenses

An array of lenses serves to adjust the spread and thereby the intensity of the radiation. Consequently, the device can be applied to a wide range of use cases, from low-level irradiation of the entire body to non-invasive imaging of specific body parts and the precise targeting of cancerous tissues.

Fiberoptical Tubes

To increase the effectiveness and at the same time reduce the risk of damaging surrounding tissues, fiberoptics can be used to direct the radiation into the body through surgical incisions. Unlike the basic design of this technology, this enhancement was developed by the Rilsu. If similar approaches were used during the First Civilization, knowledge of it did not survive the Final War.

Control Interface

The potent radiation source must be handled with utmost care. There are several parameters which determine the effect that the radiation has on the patient's organism.

• The radiation spectrum emitted by this particular crystal determines how the radiation affects the tissue.
• The rate at which oxygen is fed into the cell controls the rate at which the crystal emits its radiation.
• The focusing of the rays controls the size of the affected area.
• The duration of exposure controls the strength of the effects on the irradiated tissue.
• The type of targeted tissue determines how sensitive it is to the ionizing effects of the radiation.

The interactions between these parameters are very complex, which is why every radiotherapy device comes with a dedicated computing unit. The same computer also controls the oxygen flow and the positioning of the lenses since precision is crucial for a safe and effective treatment.

by Kathrin Janowski

Alternative name(s)

Masa Rohikrumi

Access & Availability

expensive during the First Civilization
staple of the modern Rilsu healthcare system

Complexity

highly-charged fire crystals, lead shielding, precision hardware, computer control

Discovery

effects of natural radiation in Hazu Ropuru

by Kathrin Janowski

by Kathrin Janowski

Further Reading