Ak. Carlsson et A. Ahnesjo, The collapsed cone superposition algorithm applied to scatter dose calculations in brachytherapy, MED PHYS, 27(10), 2000, pp. 2320-2332
Citations number
33
Categorie Soggetti
Radiology ,Nuclear Medicine & Imaging","Medical Research Diagnosis & Treatment
Methods for scatter dose calculations in brachytherapy have been developed
based on the collapsed cone superposition algorithm. The methods account fo
r effects on the scatter dose caused by the three-dimensional distribution
of heterogeneities in the irradiated volume and are considerably faster tha
n methods based on straightforward superposition of kernels or direct Monte
Carlo simulations. Use of a successive-scattering approach, in which the d
ose contribution from once- and multiply scattered photons are calculated s
eparately, was found superior to conventional superposition using a single
point kernel for all scatter generations. Use of the successive-scattering
approach significantly reduces artifacts stemming from steep fluence gradie
nts, typical of the brachytherapy geometry and critical for the collapsed c
one approximation. The algorithm is tested versus Monte Carlo simulations f
or point sources of energies 28.4, 100, 350, and 662 keV. Results agree wel
l for both a homogeneous water phantom and an air-water half-phantom. (C) 2
000 American Association of Physicists in Medicine. [S0094-2405(00)00210-8]
.