Modelling and dosimetry for alpha-particle therapy.
As a consequence of the high potency and short range of alpha-particles, radiopharmaceutical therapy with alpha- particle emitting radionuclides is a promising treatment approach that is under active pre-clinical and clinical investigation. To understand and predict the biological effects of alpha-particle radiopharmaceuticals, dosimetry is required at the micro or multi-cellular scale level. At such a scale, highly non-uniform irradiation of the target volume may be expected and the utility of a single absorbed dose value to predict biological effects comes into question. It is not currently possible to measure the pharmacokinetic input required for micro scale dosimetry in humans. Accordingly, pre-clinical studies are required to provide the pharmacokinetic data for dosimetry calculations. The translation of animal data to the human requires a pharmacokinetic model that links macro- and micro-scale pharmacokinetics thereby enabling the extrapolation of micro-scale kinetics from macroscopic measurements. These considerations along with a discussion of the appropriate physical quantity and related units for alpha-particle radiopharmaceutical therapy are examined in this review.
Russel H. Morgan Department of Radiology and Radiological Science, Johns Hopkins University, School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21231, USA. gsgouros@jhmi.edu
George
G
Sgouros
Robert F
RF
Hobbs
Hong
H
Song
D000818:Animals; D004307:Dose-Response Relationship, Radiation; D006801:Humans; D008954:Models, Biological; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000532:radiotherapy*; D016499:Radioimmunotherapy / Q000379:methods; D011868:Radioisotopes / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D019275:Radiopharmaceuticals / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D011879:Radiotherapy Dosage; D011880:Radiotherapy Planning, Computer-Assisted / Q000379:methods*
D011868:Radioisotopes; D019275:Radiopharmaceuticals