Development and commissioning of a Monte Carlo photon beam model for the forthcoming clinical trials in microbeam radiation therapy

Purpose: A new radiotherapy technique, named microbeam radiation therapy (MRT), is under development at the ID17 Biomedical Beamline of the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF). This innovative method is based on the fact that normal tissue can withstand high radiation doses in small volumes without any significant damage. The promising results obtained in the preclinical studies have paved the way to forthcoming clinical trials, which are currently in preparation. Highly accurate dose calculations at the treatment planning stage are required in this context. The aims of this study are the development and experimental benchmarking of a photon beam source model, which will be the core of the future MRT treatment planning system (TPS). Methods: The ID17 x-ray source was modeled by the synchrotron ray tracing codeSHADOW. The Monte Carlo (MC) simulation code PENELOPE/PENEASY was employed to transport the photon beam from the source to the patient position through all the beamline components. The phase-space state variables of the particles reaching the patient position were used as an input to generate a photon beam model. Computed dose distributions in a homogeneous media were experimentally verified by using Gafchromic® films in a solid–water phantom. Benchmarking was split into two phases. First, the lateral dose profiles and the percentage depth-dose (PDD) curves in the broad beam configuration were considered. The acceptability criteria for radiotherapy dose computations recommended by international protocols such as the Technical Reports Series 430 (TRS 430) of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) were used. Second, the analogous dosimetric magnitudes in MRT irradiations, i.e., PDD of the central microbeam and the corresponding peak-to-valley dose ratios (PVDR) were evaluated and compared with MC calculations. Results: A full characterization of the ID17 Biomedical Beamline (ESRF) synchrotron x-ray source and the development of an accurate photon beam model were achieved in this work. Calculated and experimental dose distributions agreed to within the recommended acceptability criteria described in international codes of practice (TRS 430) for broad beam irradiations. The overall deviation in low gradient areas amounted to 2%–3%. The maximum distance-to-agreement in high gradient regions was lower than 0.7 mm. MC calculations also reproduced MRT experimental results within uncertainty bars. These results validate the photon beam model