Variable Proton Relative Biological Effectiveness: How Do We Move Forward?

In photon radiation therapy, dose prescriptions have been refined over decades of clinical practice to obtain a balance between tumor control and normal tissue damage. Drawing upon this experience, these prescriptions are used as the basis for proton therapy. Historically they have been reduced by a factor of 1.1: a fixed relative biological effectiveness (RBE). Relative biological effectiveness is defined as the ratio of doses required by two radiations to cause the same level of biological effect.

http://www.redjournal.org/article/S0360-3016(15)26571-6/abstract?rss=yes

Source: International Journal of Radiation Oncology * Biology * Physics - April 13, 2016 Category: Radiology Authors: Tracy Underwood, Harald Paganetti Tags: RBE and Particle Therapy Biology Source Type: research