Use of the GEANT4 Monte Carlo to determine three-dimensional dose factors for radionuclide dosimetry

The voxel-level dosimetry is the most simple and common approach to internal dosimetry of non-uniform distributions of activity within the human body. Aim of this work was to obtain the dose "S" factors (mGy/MBqs) at the voxel level for eight beta and beta-gamma emitting radionuclides commonly used in nuclear medicine diagnostic and therapeutic procedures. We developed a Monte Carlo simulation in GEANT4 of a region of soft tissue as defined by the ICRP, divided into 11 x 11 x 11 cubic voxels, 3 mm in side. The simulation used the parameterizations of the electromagnetic interaction optimized for low energy (EEDL, EPDL). The decay of each radionuclide (P-32, Y-90, Tc-99m, Lu-177, I-131, Sm-153, Re-186, Re-188) were simulated homogeneously distributed within the central voxel (0,0,0), and the energy deposited in the surrounding voxels was mediated on the 8 octants of the three dimensional space, for reasons of symmetry. The results obtained were compared with those available in the literature. While the iodine deviations remain within 16%, for phosphorus, a pure beta emitter, the agreement is very good for self-dose (0,0,0) and good for the dose to first neighbors, while differences are observed ranging from -60% to +100% for voxels far distant from the source. The existence of significant differences in the percentage calculation of the voxel S factors, especially for pure beta emitters such as P-32 or Y-90, has already been highlighted by other authors. These data can usefully extend the dosimetric approach based on the voxel to other radionuclides not covered in the available literature. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.