Biomedical subjects

I Kawrakow

Publications and source records attributed to I Kawrakow.

3 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed1997

Electron beam dose calculations with the VMC algorithm and the verification data of the NCI working group.

The accuracy of the Monte Carlo algorithm for fast electron dose calculation, VMC, is demonstrated by comparing calculations with measurements performed by a working group of the National Cancer Institute (NCI) of the USA. For both energies investigated, 9 and 20 MeV, the measurements in water are taken to determine the energy spectra of the Varian Clinac 1800 accelerator. For the majority of the experiments a good agreement is found between measurements and VMC calculations. However, in some cases deviations have been observed, which could be explained by the incompletely known geometry on the one hand and by inconsistent data on the other hand. As a reference, dose distributions calculated by the MDAH pencil-beam algorithm are also presented. It is shown that, especially near low- or high-density inhomogeneities, large dose overestimations and underestimations are calculated by using a pencil-beam approach, whereas VMC is able to reproduce the correct doses for these cases also.

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PubMed1997

Improved modeling of multiple scattering in the Voxel Monte Carlo model.

The implementation of an improved model for multiple scattering into the-Voxel Monte Carlo (VMC) algorithm for fast electron dose calculation in radiation therapy is presented. The model takes into account path-length corrections (PLC) and lateral displacement in the individual electron steps. The extraction of the scattering power from the available computed-tomography images is discussed. It is shown that with the improved modeling of multiple electron scattering, the VMC algorithm is comparable in accuracy with PRESTA, the electron transport algorithm of EGS4. The problem of double counting of contributions from atomic electrons to the scattering power is considered and a simple solution is found.

Algorithms↗

PubMed1996

3D electron dose calculation using a Voxel based Monte Carlo algorithm (VMC).

A new model for calculating electron beam dose has been developed. The algorithm is based on a two- or three-dimensional geometry defined by computerized tomography (CT) images. The Monte Carlo technique was used to solve the electron transport equation. However, in contrast to conventional Monte Carlo models (EGS4) several approximations and simplifications in the description of elementary electron processes were introduced reducing in this manner the computational time by a factor of about 35 without significant loss in accuracy. The Monte Carlo computer program does not need any precalculated data. The random access memory required is about 16 Mbytes for a 128(2) X 50 matrix, depending on the resolution of the CT cube. The Voxel Monte Carlo model (VMC) was tested in comparison to calculations by EGS4 and the "Hogstrom algorithm" (MDAH) using several fictive phantoms. In all cases a good coincidence has been found between EGS4 and VMC, especially near tissue inhomogeneities, whereas the MDAH algorithm has produced dose underestimations of up to 40%.

Algorithms↗