Radiation therapy plays an important role in standard cancer treatment. However, patients who are resistant to traditional radiation therapy or who have relapsed after conventional radiation therapy are often encountered in clinical practice. There is therefore a need for a new radiation therapy for this type of patient. Although boron neutron capture therapy is not a new concept of radiation therapy, due to technological breakthroughs and conceptual improvements at the start of the 21 st century, this therapy, which covers multidisciplinary technologies, such as medical physics, atomic science and technology, boron-containing drug synthesis, radiobiology, and clinical oncology has advanced greatly, and has gradually matured to a clinically useful therapy for patients with cancer. This article provides a brief introduction to the latest breakthroughs and progress in this technology.