title: Quantification of relative biological effectiveness, dose modification factor and therapeutic gain factor.
abstract: Some basic aspects of tumor cell radiobiology are reviewed and the classical methods for the quantification of tumor response are outlined. The definition and methods for quantification of the parameters "relative biological effectiveness", "dose modification factor", and "therapeutic gain factor" are discussed. It is concluded that the first two parameters are of little practical use to compare different treatments. Only the therapeutic gain factor enables a reasonable estimation of the benefit that can be obtained from a new treatment modality.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Biophysics and Radiobiology, University of Hamburg, Germany.
authors.forename: H P
authors.initials: HP
authors.lastname: Beck-Bornholdt
mesh_terms: D016754:Boron Neutron Capture Therapy; D005069:Evaluation Studies as Topic; D006801:Humans; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000532:radiotherapy*; D011879:Radiotherapy Dosage; D012062:Relative Biological Effectiveness