• 한국의학물리학회지:의학물리
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• 제31권4호
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• pp.145-152
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• 2020

Purpose: In ionization-chamber dosimetry for high-dose-rate electron beams-above 20 mGy/pulse-the ion-recombination correction methods recommended by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the American Association of Physicists in Medicine (AAPM) are not appropriate, because they overestimate the correction factor. In this study, we suggest a practical ion-recombination correction method, based on Boag's improved model, and apply it to reference dosimetry for electron beams of about 100 mGy/pulse generated from an electron linear accelerator (LINAC). Methods: This study employed a theoretical model of the ion-collection efficiency developed by Boag and physical parameters used by Laitano et al. We recalculated the ion-recombination correction factors using two-voltage analysis and obtained an empirical fitting formula to represent the results. Next, we compared the calculated correction factors with published results for the same calculation conditions. Additionally, we performed dosimetry for electron beams from a 6 MeV electron LINAC using an Advanced Markus^® ionization chamber to determine the reference dose in water at the source-to-surface distance (SSD)=100 cm, using the correction factors obtained in this study. Results: The values of the correction factors obtained in this work are in good agreement with the published data. The measured dose-per-pulse for electron beams at the depth of maximum dose for SSD=100 cm was 115 mGy/pulse, with a standard uncertainty of 2.4%. In contrast, the k_s values determined using the IAEA and AAPM methods are, respectively, 8.9% and 8.2% higher than our results. Conclusions: The new method based on Boag's improved model provides a practical method of determining the ion-recombination correction factors for high dose-per-pulse radiation beams up to about 120 mGy/pulse. This method can be applied to electron beams with even higher dose-per-pulse, subject to independent verification.

• 한국의학물리학회지:의학물리
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• 제15권1호
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• pp.39-44
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• 2004

본 연구에서는 깊이선량률의 측정값과 단일에너지 계산값들로부터 치료용 전자선에 대한 에너지분포를 계산하였다. 최소제곱법에 기초한 수치연산을 이용하여 측정과 환산 깊이선량률의 차이가 최소가 되는 에너지분포를 결정하였다. 본 방법은 임상에 이용되는 명목에너지 6, 9, 12, 그리고 15 MeV 전자선에 대하여 적용되었다. 본 연구에서는 측정값과의 비교를 위하여 결정된 에너지분포를 입력자료로 이용한 깊이선량률의 몬테칼로 계산을 수행하였다. 계산된 깊이선량률을 측정값과 비교할 때, 모든 전자선에 대하여 표면에서 R$_{80}$ 깊이까지 측정값과 $\pm$3% 미만, 비정 근처까지 $\pm$4% 미만의 상대오차를 보였다. 본 연구는 입사 전자선의 에너지분포를 결정하기 위한 실용적 방법으로 응용될 수 있다.

• 한국의학물리학회지:의학물리
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• 제16권3호
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• pp.138-147
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• 2005

몬테칼로 선량계산 시 적절한 정확도를 얻기 위해서는 계산입자수를 늘려야 하고 그로 인해 계산 시간이 오래 걸리게되므로 일상적 치료계획의 선량계산 방법으로 이용되지 못했다. 본 연구에서는 몬테칼로 모의실험 시 계산입자 수를 줄여서 선량계산을 수행한 후 잡음 감소 필터를 적용하여 선량계산 결과를 개선하고자 하였다. 이를 위해 국소 최소자승 잡음 감소 필터를 제작하고 광자선 및 전자선 균질/비균질 팬텀 내 선량계산 결과에 대하여 적용하여 선택적 여과를 수행하였으며 그 유효성을 등선량 곡선 비교 및 감마시험을 통하여 검증하였다. 연구 결과 통계적 불확실도를 2$\%$ 이내로 유지하기 위해 필요한 계산입자수의 10$\%$ 이하의 계산입자 수를 이용하여 몬테칼로 선량계산 뒤 후처리한 결과가 기준계산 입자수를 이용하여 얻은 몬테칼로 선량계산 결과와 유사해질 수 있음을 확인하였다.

• Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
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• 제40권1호
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• pp.17-24
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• 2015

To improve accuracy of dose calculation on kilovoltage cone beam computed tomography (kV CBCT) images, a custom-made phantom was fabricated to acquire an accurate CT number to electron density curve by full scatter of cone beam x-ray. To evaluate the dosimetric accuracy, 9 volumetric modulated arc therapy (VMAT) plans for head and neck (HN) cancer and 9 VMAT plans for lung cancer were generated with an anthropomorphic phantom. Both CT and CBCT images of the anthropomorphic phantom were acquired and dose-volumetric parameters on the CT images with CT density curve (CTCT), CBCT images with CT density curve ($CBCT_{CT}$) and CBCT images with CBCT density curve ($CBCT_{CBCT}$) were calculated for each VMAT plan. The differences between $CT_{CT}$ vs. $CBCT_{CT}$ were similar to those between $CT_{CT}$ vs. $CBCT_{CBCT}$ for HN VMAT plans. However, the differences between $CT_{CT}$ vs. $CBCT_{CT}$ were larger than those between $CT_{CT}$ vs. $CBCT_{CBCT}$ for lung VMAT plans. Especially, the differences in $D_{98%}$ and $D_{95%}$ of lung target volume were statistically significant (4.7% vs. 0.8% with p = 0.033 for $D_{98%}$ and 4.8% vs. 0.5% with p = 0.030 for $D_{95%}$). In order to calculate dose distributions accurately on the CBCT images, CBCT density curve generated with full scatter condition should be used especially for dose calculations in the region of large inhomogeneity.

• 한국의학물리학회지:의학물리
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• 제16권4호
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• pp.161-165
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• 2005

CT 기종에 따라서 전자밀도에 대응하는 CT 수의 변화와 치료계획 시 선량계산에 미치는 영향을 분석하였다. 5종의 CT를 이용하여 전자밀도 교정 팬톰의 영상을 얻어 기종에 따른 CT 수의 변화를 알아보았다. 조직등가물질의 밀도에서 CT 수는 ${\pm}2\%$ 내의 차이를 보였으나 밀도가 큰 영역에서는 최대 $9.5\%$의 차이를 나타냈다. CT 수의 변화가 치료계획의 선량계산에 미치는 영향을 알아보기 위하여 환자의 흉부 영상을 이용하여 장기별로 선량의 차이를 분석한 결과 최대 $0.48\%$로 거의 차이를 보이지 않았다. 밀도가 큰 물질이 인체 내에 삽입되어 있을 경우를 가정하여 물팬톰에 CT 수가 2,000인 고밀도 물질을 삽입한 팬톰 영상을 치료계획장치에 그려 넣었다. 고밀도 물질 아래 20 cm 깊이에서 선량 계산을 비교한 결과 $2.1\%$의 차이를 보였다. 치료계획 단계에서 선량 불확도를 최소화하기 위해서는 사용되는 CT 기종에 따른 CT수와 전자밀도의 정확한 환산이 필요하며, 특히 한 기관에서 여러 종류의 CT를 이용하는 경우 각 CT 별로 전자밀도에 대응하는 CT 수를 입력하고 서로 구별하여 사용하여야한다. 또한 CT수의 재현성을 확인하기 위해 주기적인 점검이 요구된다.

• 한국의학물리학회지:의학물리
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• 제11권2호
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• pp.147-155
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• 2000

Patient dose verification is one of the most important parts in quality assurance of the treatment delivery for radiation therapy. The dose distributions may be meaningfully improved by modulating two dimensional intensity profile of the individual high energy radiation beams In this study, a new method is presented for the pre-treatment dosimetric verification of these two dimensional distributions of beam intensity by means of a charge coupled device video camera-based fluoroscopic device (henceforth called as CCD-VCFD) as a radiation detecter with a custom-made software for dose calculation from fluorescence signals. This system of dosimeter (CCD-VCFD) could reproduce three dimensional (3D) relative dose distribution from the digitized fluoroscopic signals for small (1.0$\times$1.0 cm$^2$ square, ø 1.0 cm circular ) and large (30$\times$30cm$^2$) field sizes used in intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT). For the small beam sizes of photon and electron, the calculations are performed In absolute beam fluence profiles which are usually used for calculation of the patient dose distribution. The good linearity with respect to the absorbed dose, independence of dose rate, and three dimensional profiles of small beams using the CCD-VCFD were demonstrated by relative measurements in high energy Photon (15 MV) and electron (9 MeV) beams. These measurements of beam profiles with CCD-VCFD show good agreement with those with other dosimeters such as utramicro-cylindrical (UC) ionization chamber and radiographic film. The study of the radiation dosimetric technique using CCD-VCFD may provide a fast and accurate pre-treatment verification tool for the small beam used in stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) and can be used for verification of dose distribution from dynamic multi-leaf collimation system (DMLC).

• 한국의학물리학회지:의학물리
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• 제13권4호
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• pp.195-201
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• 2002

측방 산란이 상대적으로 많은 6 MeV 전자선에 대하여 세로 자기장에서 반음영의 변화를 몬테칼로 계산을 이용하여 연구하였다. 전자의 물질과의 상호작용 계산에서 외부 자기장의 효과를 반열하기 위하여 자기장에서 전자의 방향변화에 관한 알고리즘을 개발하여 EGS4 시스템에 삽입하였다. 완성된 코드를 이용하여 점선원 기하구조를 설정하고 SSD 100 cm에서 직경 5 cm인 전자선에 대하여 0-3 T의 세로 자기장이 걸려있는 팬텀속 1.5 cm, 2.0 cm, 2.4 cm 깊이에서의 빔 프로파일을 계산하였다. 자기장의 세기에 따른 반음영의 감소를 나타내기 위해 같은 질이에서의 기존 반음영의 폭과 자기장에 의한 반음영 폭의 감소 비로 반음영 감소율(PRR)을 정의하였다. 계산결과 팬텀속 1.5 cm, 2.0 cm, 2.4 cm 깊이에 대하여 자기장의 세기가 2 T인 경우에 PRR은 각각 27%, 36%, 36%로 나타났으며, 3 T인 경우에는 각각 46%, 50%, 50%로 나타났다 0.5 T와 1 T에서는 자기장의 효과가 매우 미약하였다. 이 결과는 6 MeV 전자선의 경우에 2 T 이상의 자기장을 세로방향으로 인가한는 경우에 측방산란된 전자들이 자기장에 의하여 편향되면서 반음영의 폭이 크게 줄어드는 것으로 해석할 수 있다. 결론적으로 전자선치료에서 세로 자기장을 병행하는 경우에 조사면 가장자리의 선량감소가 보상됨으로써 치료효과의 증대를 기대할 수 있다.

• Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
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• 제48권3호
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• pp.117-123
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• 2023

Background: We investigated the impact of 0.35 T magnetic field on dose calculation for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) stereotactic ablative radiotherapy (SABR) in the ViewRay system (ViewRay Inc.), which features a simultaneous use of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to guide radiotherapy for an improved targeting of tumors. Materials and Methods: Here, we present a comprehensive analysis of the effects induced by the 0.35 T magnetic field on various characteristics of SABR plans including the plan qualities and dose calculation for the planning target volume, organs at risk, and outer/inner shells. Therefore, two SABR plans were set up, one with a 0.35 T magnetic field applied during radiotherapy and another in the absence of the field. The dosimetric parameters were calculated in both cases, and the plan quality indices were evaluated using a Monte Carlo algorithm based on a treatment planning system. Results and Discussion: Our findings showed no significant impact on dose calculation under the 0.35 T magnetic field for all analyzed parameters. Nonetheless, a significant enhancement in the dose was calculated on the skin surrounding the tumor when the 0.35 T magnetic field was applied during the radiotherapy. This was attributed to the electron return effect, which results from the deviation of the electrons ejected from tissues upon radiation due to Lorentz forces. These returned electrons re-enter the tissues, causing a local dose increase in the calculated dose. Conclusion: The present study highlights the impact of the 0.35 T magnetic field used for MRI in the ViewRay system for NSCLC SABR treatment, especially on the skin surrounding the tumors.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• 제49권7호
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• pp.1495-1504
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• 2017

In a previous study, a set of polygon-mesh (PM)-based skin models including a $50-{\mu}m-thick$ radiosensitive target layer were constructed and used to calculate skin dose coefficients (DCs) for idealized external beams of electrons. The results showed that the calculated skin DCs were significantly different from the International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP) Publication 116 skin DCs calculated using voxel-type ICRP reference phantoms that do not include the thin target layer. The difference was as large as 7,700 times for electron energies less than 1 MeV, which raises a significant issue that should be addressed subsequently. In the present study, therefore, as an extension of the initial, previous study, skin DCs for three other particles (photons, protons, and helium ions) were calculated by using the PM-based skin models and the calculated values were compared with the ICRP-116 skin DCs. The analysis of our results showed that for the photon exposures, the calculated values were generally in good agreement with the ICRP-116 values. For the charged particles, by contrast, there was a significant difference between the PM-model-calculated skin DCs and the ICRP-116 values. Specifically, the ICRP-116 skin DCs were smaller than those calculated by the PM models-which is to say that they were under-estimated-by up to ~16 times for both protons and helium ions. These differences in skin dose also significantly affected the calculation of the effective dose (E) values, which is reasonable, considering that the skin dose is the major factor determining effective dose calculation for charged particles. The results of the current study generally show that the ICRP-116 DCs for skin dose and effective dose are not reliable for charged particles.

• 한국의학물리학회지:의학물리
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• 제28권1호
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• pp.27-32
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• 2017

We investigated the effect of a commercial iterative reconstruction technique (iDose, Philips) on the image quality and the dose calculation for the treatment plan. Using the electron density phantom, the 3D CT images with five different protocols (50, 100, 200, 350 and 400 mAs) were obtained. Additionally, the acquired data was reconstructed using the iDose with level 5. A lung phantom was used to acquire the 4D CT with the default protocol as a reference and the low dose (one third of the default protocol) 4D CT using the iDose for the spine and lung plans. When applying the iDose at the same mAs, the mean HU value was changed up to 85 HU. Although the 1 SD was increased with reducing the CT dose, it was decreased up to 4 HU due to the use of iDose. When using the low dose 4D CT with iDose, the dose change relative to the reference was less than 0.5% for the target and OARs in the spine plan. It was also less than 1.1% in the lung plan. Therefore, our results suggests that this dose reduction technique is applicable to the 4D CT image acquisition for the radiation treatment planning.