Rare-earth doped radioluminescent hydrogel as a potential phantom material for 3D gel dosimeter

Tao Yang,Junhui Wang,Jiamin Sun,Jiali Tu,Yanfei Wang,Wanxin Wen,Xiaoxi Zhou,Jian Chen

doi:10.1515/epoly-2021-0053

Abstract

AbstractCancer prevention and treatment are currently the focus of most research. Dose verification is an important step for reducing the improper dose deposition during radiotherapy. To mend the traditional gel dosimeters for 3D dose verification, a novel rare-earth nanoparticle-based composite gel was prepared, which has good radioluminescence property and reusability. It is a promising phantom material for the new 3D gel dosimeter. TEM, DLS, FT-IR, TGA, and spectrofluorometer were used to determine the chemical structure, micromorphology, and optical performance. Compared to the traditional gel dosimeters, the composite gel has a good linear relationship between the light intensity excited by X-ray and the tube current. Furthermore, it may measure the dose distribution immediatelyin situ, which reduces errors and saves time. This work provides a new idea for the research of 3D gel dosimeters and promotes the safe and effective use of radiotherapy.

Highlights

In 2020, there were approximately 1.93 million new cancer patients and 10.0 million deaths due to cancer worldwide [1], leading to more attention in cancer prevention and treatment
A main limitation of the Fricke gel dosimeter is the diffusion of the ferrous and ferric ions following irradiation that may affect the result of dose distribution measurement [5]
The radiochromic gel dosimeter has poor transparency, which disturbs the follow-up measurement of light absorption

Summary

Introduction

In 2020, there were approximately 1.93 million new cancer patients and 10.0 million deaths due to cancer worldwide [1], leading to more attention in cancer prevention and treatment. Gel dosimeter has been investigated since 1950 and it has been applied in clinics [3,4]. A main limitation of the Fricke gel dosimeter is the diffusion of the ferrous and ferric ions following irradiation that may affect the result of dose distribution measurement [5]. Zhang et al developed a novel Fricke gel dosimeter that featured a low diffusion of Fe3+ by virtue of W1/O/W2 emulsion [7]. Zin et al prepared a new MAGAT dosimeter (polymeric gel dosimeter) with the addition of methylene blue and zinc oxide. The results showed that methylene blue reduced self-polymerization and zinc oxide increased the dose response [9]. The Kenichi Tanaka group synthesized a novel radiochromic gel dosimeter by the complexation of polyvinyl alcohol and

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