Abstract:
As the second leading cause of death, cancer is a harsh reality. Skin cancer is one of the most
prevalent cancers in South Africa and is commonly treated using electron radiation in radiotherapy.
The applied radiation field needs to be shaped to the size of the cancer-affected area on the patient.
This can be achieved through end-frames that fit into applicators that attach to the treatment unit. The
end-frames are produced by casting Wood’s alloy into commercially available jigs. However,
producing these end-frames presents various shortcomings such as lack of dimensional accuracy, the
inconsistent density of the castings and the high cost of the jigs. The aim of this study was to develop
a Wood’s alloy casting unit that can be made available to local oncology departments to produce endframes
that are superior to what can be produced through commercial jigs. This paper describes the
development and manufacturing of the new casting equipment and experiments performed to
evaluate end-frames produced. Results showed that end-frames cast in the newly developed casting
equipment are dimensionally more accurate, have consistent high density, and can be produced in a
shorter time.
