Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) announced on July 28 that it has confirmed the therapeutic potential of low-dose radiation in treating Alzheimer’s disease through clinical research. This study is notable as the world’s first and largest clinical trial applying radiation therapy, traditionally used for cancer treatment, to a difficult-to-treat neurodegenerative disorder.
The KHNP Radiation Health Institute has been collaborating with Korea Gangdong Kyunghee University Hospital, Chungbuk National University Hospital, and Seoul Boramae Medical Center since 2021. The research involved 36 early-stage Alzheimer's patients who received low-dose radiation twice a week for three weeks, with ongoing monitoring of cognitive function and biological markers through imaging and blood tests over a 12-month period.
Previous studies on this topic were mainly small-scale, involving about five patients without control groups. In contrast, this study’s larger scale and rigorous design represent a significant advancement in research.
Using a medical linear accelerator intended for cancer treatment, researchers administered radiation doses at 1/50 to 1/5 of the conventional dose for cancer therapy (0.04Gy or 0.5Gy). The effects and side effects of this low-dose radiation were compared between a control group receiving only medication and an experimental group receiving radiation concurrently.
The results showed that while cognitive decline continued in the control group over 12 months, the radiation-treated group experienced a slowdown in cognitive deterioration with no observed adverse effects related to treatment. Based on these promising results, the research team plans to publish in international academic journals and conduct further confirmatory clinical trials to verify efficacy and safety.
Alzheimer’s disease accounts for 50-70% of dementia cases and involves the gradual loss of cognitive functions due to the accumulation of amyloid beta and tau proteins in the brain. Given its difficulty to cure and the limited treatment options, many global pharmaceutical companies are actively developing new therapies.
KHNP’s Radiation Health Institute continues to research the biological effects of low-dose radiation and holds multiple patents and publications in this field. Notably, prior experiments using fruit fly models demonstrated alleviation of Alzheimer’s symptoms.
Lee Bong-soo, director of the Radiation Health Institute, stated, “This study marks the first case where KHNP’s expertise in radiation impact research has been integrated into public health efforts, beyond just energy company roles,” adding, “We will explore treatment methods for various intractable diseases based on the medical potential of low-dose radiation and expand our contributions to public healthcare.”
KHNP plans to further broaden its research scope to include treatments for other difficult-to-treat diseases such as Alzheimer’s, utilizing advances in radiation medicine, and aims to realize the public value of radiation technology.
