title: A study on comparison of Gafchromic EBT2 film response under single and cumulative exposure conditions.
abstract: Gafchromic films are used as dosimeter for in vivo and in phantom dose measurements. The dose response of Gafchromic EBT2 film under single and repeated exposure conditions is compared in this study to analyze the usability of Gafchromic EBT2 films in cumulative dose measurements. The post-irradiation change in response of the film is studied for up to 4 days after irradiation. The effect of repeated exposure to scanner light on the response of the film is also studied. To check usability of Gafchromic EBT2 films in cumulative dose measurements, three EBT2 films were exposed to a daily fraction dose of 100 cGy, 150 cGy and 200 cGy, respectively, for 4 days. The dose response of the films exposed to cumulative irradiation was compared with the dose measured from films exposed to the same dose but in a single exposure. It is observed that the post-irradiation darkening of the film does not saturate and continue to take place even 4 days after irradiation. The dose measured from the EBT2 films after 4 days from irradiation was around 2% higher than the dose measured from the same films at 24 hours post-irradiation. It was also observed that the repeated exposure to scanner light does not produce any significant change in the film response. The dose response of films exposed to cumulative irradiation agrees with the dose response of films exposed to the same dose in a single irradiation with less than 3% difference. Gafchromic EBT2 films can be used to measure the cumulative dose delivered over multiple fractions, when the delivered dose is uniform across the film.
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiotherapy, Apollo Specialty Hospital, Chennai, India.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ganapathy
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiotherapy, Apollo Specialty Hospital, Chennai, India.
authors.forename: P G G
authors.initials: PG
authors.lastname: Kurup
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiotherapy, Apollo Specialty Hospital, Chennai, India.
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Murali
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiotherapy, Apollo Specialty Hospital, Chennai, India.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Muthukumaran
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Physics, Anna University, Chennai, India.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Velmurugan
keywords: Gafchromic EBT2 film; Post irradiation darkening of EBT2 film; Re usability of EBT2 film