IntroductionThe aim was to evaluate the risk of acute side effects in the lung after 3-dimensional conformal radiotherapy (3D-CRT) in patients treated for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). An attempt was made to single out clinical factors and factors related to treatment technique which may induce acute post-radiation pneumonitis.Material and methodsThe analysis concerned 34 consecutive patients who underwent radical radiation therapy for NSCLC. Intensity of early toxicity was evaluated using modified RTOG/EORTC toxicity score. The endpoint for this analysis was the occurrence of radiation pneumonitis of grade 2 or higher. Factors related to treatment techniques were included in the statistical analysis.ResultsFifty-three percent of patients included in the study suffered from acute post-radiation pneumonitis. The results of the study revealed the existence of lung tissue sensitivity to low doses of ionizing radiation. The multivariate analysis showed that total lung volume receiving a low dose of 10 Gy increased the risk of post-radiation pneumonitis (p = 0.01).ConclusionsAcute post-radiation pneumonitis was a relevant clinical problem in patients who underwent radical radiotherapy for non-small cell lung cancer. The lung volume receiving a dose of 10 Gy was the most important dosimetric factor which influenced the post-radiation acute pneumonitis.
AbstractThis paper aims to determine the levels of exposure to neutron and photon radiation among the personnel engaged in cyclotron operation and the personnel engaged in the production of radiopharmaceuticals, with the use of the environmental radiation monitoring system (RMS) installed in the positron emission tomography laboratory. The annual exposures of employees operating the cyclotron measured with the use of the RMS system are: 1.39 ± 0.16 mSv in case of photon radiation and 2.61 ± 0.14 mSv in case of neutron radiation. In the case of employees in the radiopharmaceuticals’ production zone, the annual exposures measured by means of the RMS system are 0.15 ± 0.03 mSv in case of photon radiation and 0.11 ± 0.01 mSv in case of neutron radiation. The exposure levels among the personnel engaged in cyclotron operation and the personnel engaged in the production of radiopharmaceuticals are below the permissible radiation dose limits.
This study describes a comparative analysis of treatment plans in 48 patients with prostate cancer treated with ionizing radiation. Each patient was subjected to the intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) and arc technique. In each treatment plan, the organs at risk were assessed: the urinary bladder, rectum and heads of the femur, as well as the volume of normal tissue. The following features were compared: treatment time, conformity indices for the planning target volume, mean doses and standard deviation in organs at risk, and organ volumes for each particular dose. The treatment period in the arc technique is 13.7% shorter than in the IMRT technique. Comparing the results of the IMRT and arc techniques (arc vs. IMRT), the mean values were 29.21 ± 12.91 Gy versus 28.36 ± 13.79 Gy for the bladder, 20.36 ± 3.16 Gy versus 18.17 ± 5.11 Gy for the right femoral head, and 18.98 ± 3.28 Gy versus 16.67 ± 5.15 Gy for the left femoral head. For the rectum, lower values were obtained after application of the arc technique, not the IMRT technique: 35.84 ± 12.28 Gy versus 35.90 ± 13.05 Gy. The results indicate that the applied therapy has a statistically significant influence on the volume for a particular dose with regard to the urinary bladder. It is advisable to apply the IMRT technique to patients who need the femur heads and urinary bladder protected by exposing them to low irradiation doses.
The production of 18F-FDG is a multi-stage process, which includes not only obtaining the marker and labelling the radiopharmaceutical but also carrying out the quality control of the obtained compound. The staff can be exposed to ionizing radiation at any stage of production. This article presents the results of hands exposure of staff members employed in a facility, where 18F-FDG is produced and injected into patients. High-sensitivity thermoluminescent detectors (MCP-N) were used for measurements. The measurements were conducted with regard to the occupational structure the employees and the performed procedures. The obtained results showed that the highest risk of radiation exposure for personnel was associated with the quality control of the radiopharmaceutical. The daily doses registered by MCP-N detectors on fingertips reached 4.5 mSv, which may result in exceeding the annual radiation limit of 500 mSv.
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