ABSTRACT
Radiotherapy aims to cure cancer by delivering absorbed doses in a narrow interval (the “therapeutic window”) that balances tumor control probability and normal tissue complications. Accurate delivery of absorbed dose is crucial since dose response curves for tumors and normal tissues can be steep. Dose calculation methods used in treatment planning constitute one link in the dosimetric chain. Results from studies using Monte Carlo (MC) simulations in realistic brachytherapy (BT) geometries show dierences with results from calculations using the American Association of Physicists in Medicine (AAPM) Task Group 43 report (TG-43) formalism in use today (Nath et al. 1995; Rivard et al. 2004). ese dierences are pronounced at low photon energies (<50 keV) but are more moderate at higher energies.
