A standard dosimetry procedure for 192Ir sources used for endovascular brachytherapy.

The experimental dosimetry of a high dose rate (HDR) 192Ir source used for the brachytherapy of peripheral vessels is reported. The direct determination of the reference air kerma rate Kr agrees, within the experimental uncertainty, with the results obtained by a well ionization chamber calibrated at the NIST and the manufacturer's certification. A highly sensitive (HS) radiochromic film (RCF), that presents only one active layer, was used for the source dosimetry in a water phantom. The adopted experimental set-up, with the source in its catheter positioned on the RCF plane, seems to have given better accuracy of the RCF optical density measurements. The agreement between the measurement of the dose rate constant DKr (10 mm, pi/2) and the literature data confirmed the coherence of the HS RCF calibration obtained by the kerma in air measurements. The RCF measurements supplied dosimetric information about the dose to water per reference air kerma rate D(r, theta)/Kr along the source transverse bisector axis, the radial dose function g(r) and the anisotropy function F(r, theta). The value D(2 mm, pi/2)/Kr = 22.4 +/- 1.2 cGy h(-1)/(microGy h(-1)) is supplied with a dose uncertainty that is essentially due to the indeterminacy of the source position in the catheter. The data of the radial and anisotropy functions have been compared with Monte Carlo determinations reported in the literature.

Determination of the Kwall correction factor for a cylindrical ionization chamber to measure air-kerma in 60Co gamma beams.

The factor Kwall to correct for photon attenuation and scatter in the wall of ionization chambers for 60Co air-kerma measurement has been traditionally determined by a procedure based on a linear extrapolation of the chamber current to zero wall thickness. Monte Carlo calculations by Rogers and Bielajew (1990 Phys. Med. Biol. 35 1065-78) provided evidence, mostly for chambers of cylindrical and spherical geometry, of appreciable deviations between the calculated values of Kwall and those obtained by the traditional extrapolation procedure. In the present work an experimental method other than the traditional extrapolation procedure was used to determine the Kwall factor. In this method the dependence of the ionization current in a cylindrical chamber was analysed as a function of an effective wall thickness in place of the physical (radial) wall thickness traditionally considered in this type of measurement. To this end the chamber wall was ideally divided into distinct regions and for each region an effective thickness to which the chamber current correlates was determined. A Monte Carlo calculation of attenuation and scatter effects in the different regions of the chamber wall was also made to compare calculation to measurement results. The Kwall values experimentally determined in this work agree within 0.2% with the Monte Carlo calculation. The agreement between these independent methods and the appreciable deviation (up to about 1%) between the results of both these methods and those obtained by the traditional extrapolation procedure support the conclusion that the two independent methods providing comparable results are correct and the traditional extrapolation procedure is likely to be wrong. The numerical results of the present study refer to a cylindrical cavity chamber like that adopted as the Italian national air-kerma standard at INMRI-ENEA (Italy). The method used in this study applies, however, to any other chamber of the same type.

Protocol for X-ray dosimetry in radiobiology.

PURPOSE: To harmonize X-ray dosimetry in radiobiology to allow a direct comparison of radiobiological studies performed at institutes cooperating within the framework of the European Late Effects Project Group (EULEP). MATERIALS AND METHODS: The 1985 EULEP protocol for X-ray dosimetry and exposure arrangements employed for studies of late somatic effects in mammals required serious revision, e.g. due to the replacement of calibration of dosemeters in terms of exposure by calibration in terms of air kerma free-in-air. An action group established by EULEP and the European Radiation Dosimetry Group (EURADOS) updated the 1985 protocol. RESULTS: The new EULEP-EURADOS protocol for X-ray dosimetry in radiobiology including the code of practice for irradiation of small animals and related dosimetry. The present protocol includes the changes in calibration procedures and dosimetric concepts for irradiation with medium energy X-rays since 1985. Accuracy and precision are replaced by the concept of combined (standard) uncertainty. The revised supplements provide more detailed background information. New appendices contain definitions of general terms used for measurements and mathematical expressions of the relative variances. CONCLUSION: Adherence to the present protocol will result in improved dosimetry and facilitates the comparison of results of radiobiological experiments obtained at different institutes.

Comparison of the NIST and ENEA Air Kerma Standards.

A comparison was made between the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and Ente per le Nuove Tecnologie l'Energia e l'Ambiente (ENEA) air kerma standards for medium energy x rays and 60Co gamma rays. The comparison took place at ENEA in June 1994. Two different transfer chambers from NIST were used for the comparison. The measurements were made at radiation qualities similar to those used at the Bureau International des Poids et Mesures (BIPM) (generating voltages of 100 kV, 135 kV, 180 kV and 250 kV, respectively) and with 60Co gamma radiation. The transfer chamber calibration factors obtained at the NIST and at the ENEA agreed with one another to 0.03 % for 60Co gamma radiation and between 0.1 % to 0.8 % for the medium energy x-ray beam codes.

Ion-recombination correction factor ksat for spherical ion chambers irradiated by continuous photon beams.

The large range of reference air kerma rates of brachytherapy sources involves the use of large-volume ionization chambers. When such ionization chambers are used the ion-recombination correction factor ksat has to be determined. In this paper three spherical ion chambers with volumes ranging from 30 to 10(4) cm3 have been irradiated by photons of a 192Ir source to determine the ksat factors. The ionization currents of the ion chambers as a function of the applied voltage and the air kerma rate have been analysed to determine the contribution of the initial and general ion recombination. The ksat values for large-volume ionization chambers obtained by considering the general ion recombination as predominant (Almond's approach) are in disagreement with the results obtained using methods that consider both initial and general ion-recombination contributions (Niatel's approach). Such disagreement can reach 0.7% when high currents are measured for a high-activity source calibration in terms of reference air kerma rate. In this study a new 'two-voltage' method, independent of the voltage ratio given by a dosimetry system, is proposed for practical dosimetry of continuous x- and gamma-radiation beams. In the case where the Almond approach is utilized, the voltage ratio V1/V2 should be less than 2 instead of Almond's limit of V1/V2 < 5.