title: An international dosimetry exchange for BNCT part II: computational dosimetry normalizations.
abstract: The meaningful sharing and combining of clinical results from different centers in the world performing boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) requires improved precision in dose specification between programs. To this end absorbed dose normalizations were performed for the European clinical centers at the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission, Petten (The Netherlands), Nuclear Research Institute, Rez (Czech Republic), VTT, Espoo (Finland), and Studsvik, Nyköping (Sweden). Each European group prepared a treatment plan calculation that was bench-marked against Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) dosimetry performed in a large, water-filled phantom to uniformly evaluate dose specifications with an estimated precision of +/-2%-3%. These normalizations were compared with those derived from an earlier exchange between Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) and MIT in the USA. Neglecting the uncertainties related to biological weighting factors, large variations between calculated and measured dose are apparent that depend upon the 10B uptake in tissue. Assuming a boron concentration of 15 microg g(-1) in normal tissue, differences in the evaluated maximum dose to brain for the same nominal specification of 10 Gy(w) at the different facilities range between 7.6 and 13.2 Gy(w) in the trials using boronophenylalanine (BPA) as the boron delivery compound and between 8.9 and 11.1 Gy(w) in the two boron sulfhydryl (BSH) studies. Most notably, the value for the same specified dose of 10 Gy(w) determined at the different participating centers using BPA is significantly higher than at BNL by 32% (MIT), 43% (VTT), 49% (JRC), and 74% (Studsvik). Conversion of dose specification is now possible between all active participants and should be incorporated into future multi-center patient analyses.
authors.affiliation: Nuclear Reactor Laboratory, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, USA.
authors.forename: K J
authors.initials: KJ
authors.lastname: Riley
authors.forename: P J
authors.initials: PJ
authors.lastname: Binns
authors.forename: O K
authors.initials: OK
authors.lastname: Harling
authors.forename: J R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Albritton
authors.forename: W S
authors.initials: WS
authors.lastname: Kiger
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Rezaei
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Sköld
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Seppälä
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Savolainen
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Auterinen
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Marek
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Viererbl
authors.forename: V A
authors.initials: VA
authors.lastname: Nievaart
authors.forename: R L
authors.initials: RL
authors.lastname: Moss
mesh_terms: D001895:Boron / Q000494:pharmacology; D001896:Boron Compounds / Q000494:pharmacology; D016754:Boron Neutron Capture Therapy / Q000379:methods* / Q000592:standards*; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic; D006801:Humans; D007554:Isotopes / Q000494:pharmacology; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000532:radiotherapy*; D019047:Phantoms, Imaging; D010649:Phenylalanine / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000494:pharmacology; D011838:Radiation-Sensitizing Agents / Q000494:pharmacology; D011874:Radiometry / Q000379:methods* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011879:Radiotherapy Dosage; D011880:Radiotherapy Planning, Computer-Assisted / Q000379:methods*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012984:Software; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D001896:Boron Compounds; D007554:Isotopes; D011838:Radiation-Sensitizing Agents; D010649:Phenylalanine; D001895:Boron; C033685:4-boronophenylalanine