Sensitivity of a bone-equivalent polymer gel dosimeter for measuring the dose to bone during radiation therapy

In this study, we developed a bone-equivalent polymer gel dosimeter (BPGD) that can measure the dose absorbed by the bone and investigated its sensitivity. The BPGDs were prepared by adding 3.0  mol of calcium hydrogen phosphate dihydrate as a component of bone to an improved dose-sensitive polyacrylamide gelatin and tetrakis hydroxymethyl phosphonium chloride (iPAGAT). One day after preparation, the BPGDs were irradiated with a field size of 15 × 15 cm2 using a 10 MV X-ray beam to evaluate the dose sensitivity, dose-rate dependence, and dose-integration dependence. One day after dose exposure, the BPGDs were scanned using a 0.4  T MRI APERTO Eterna (Hitachi, Tokyo, Japan) to obtainR2 values. The difference between theR2 values of 6  Gy and 0 Gy was up to 5 s−1, and theR2 curve plateaued in the high-dose region. Moreover, the BPGD did not depend on the integration of the dose and dose rates. Therefore, the BPGDs that we developed can determine the radiation dose to bones.
Source: Radiological Physics and Technology - Category: Physics Source Type: research