Dosimetric calibration of anatomy‐specific ultra‐high dose rate electron irradiation platform for preclinical FLASH radiobiology experiments

作者：Jinghui Wang, Stavros Melemenidis, Rakesh Manjappa, Vignesh Viswanathan, Ramish M. Ashraf, Karen Levy, Lawrie Skinner, Luis A. Soto, Stephanie Chow, Brianna Lau, Ryan B. Ko, Edward E. Graves, Amy S. Yu, Karl Bush, Murat Sürücü, Erinn B. Rankin, Billy W. Loo, Emil Schüler, Peter G. Maxim · 发表于：Medical Physics · 年份：2024 · DOI：10.1002/mp.17432 · 被引用次数：7 · 研究领域：Advanced Radiotherapy Techniques、Radiation Therapy and Dosimetry、Effects of Radiation Exposure

Abstract Background FLASH radiation therapy (RT) offers a promising avenue for the broadening of the therapeutic index. However, to leverage the full potential of FLASH in the clinical setting, an improved understanding of the biological principles involved is critical. This requires the availability of specialized equipment optimized for the delivery of conventional (CONV) and ultra‐high dose rate (UHDR) irradiation for preclinical studies. One method to conduct such preclinical radiobiological research involves adapting a clinical linear accelerator configured to deliver both CONV and UHDR irradiation. Purpose We characterized the dosimetric properties of a clinical linear accelerator configured to deliver ultra‐high dose rate irradiation to two anatomic sites in mice and for cell‐culture FLASH radiobiology experiments. Methods Delivered doses of UHDR electron beams were controlled by a microcontroller and relay interfaced with the respiratory gating system. We also produced beam collimators with indexed stereotactic mouse positioning devices to provide anatomically specific preclinical treatments. Treatment delivery was monitored directly with an ionization chamber, and charge measurements were correlated with radiochromic film measurements at the entry surface of the mice. The setup for conventional dose rate irradiation utilized the same collimation system but at increased source‐to‐surface distance. Monte Carlo simulations and film dosimetry were used to characterize be...