High‐resolution three‐dimensional dosimetry in clinically relevant volumes utilizing optically stimulated luminescence

Abstract

BackgroundThe continued development of new radiotherapy techniques requires dosimetry systems that satisfy increasingly rigorous requirements, such as high sensitivity, wide dose range, and high spatial resolution. An emerging requirement is the ability to read out doses in three dimensions (3D) with high precision and spatial resolution. A few dosimetry systems with 3D capabilities are available, but their application in a clinical workflow is limited for various reasons, primarily originating from their chemical nature. The search for a 3D dosimetry system with potential for clinical implementation is thus ongoing.PurposeTo demonstrate the capabilities of a novel optically‐stimulated‐luminescence (OSL)‐based 3D dosimetry system capable of measuring radiation doses in clinically relevant volumes.MethodsA laser‐based readout system was used to measure dose distributions delivered by both photons and protons, utilizing the OSL from a mm3YSO:Ce crystal. A homogeneous treatment plan consisting of two opposing photon fields was used to establish an inhomogeneity correction map of the crystal response and demonstrated the accuracy and precision of the system. The crystal was additionally irradiated with a photon treatment plan consisting of three overlapping 10 × 10 mm2fields delivered from different angles, and a proton treatment plan consisting of four pencil beams with energies 90 MeV (× 2), 115 MeV, and 140 MeV. The system abilities were quantified by comparing the 3D‐resolved measurements to Monte Carlo simulations.ResultsThe dose map reproducibility of the system was found to be within 2% including both statistical and systematic errors. The measurements yielded integrated doses from a volume of mm3with voxel volumes of just mm3. An excellent agreement between the 3D‐resolved measurements and the simulations was found for both photon‐ and proton‐irradiation.ConclusionsThe capabilities of the devised system for measuring clinically relevant fields of photons and proton pencil beams within a clinically relevant volume were demonstrated. The system poses as a promising candidate for clinical applications, and enables future research in the field of OSL‐based tissue‐equivalent 3D dosimetry.