Background: Stereotactic radiosurgery is the use of external radiation in association with a stereotactic device to precisely locate and destroy inaccessible deep-seated lesions within the brain in a single treatment session. Very little attention has been paid to the extracranial sites of radiation exposure measurements. This study evaluates the extracranial absorbed dose due to leakage and scattered radiation of the Gamma Unit used in radiosurgery.
Methods: The absorbed doses were measured with thermoluminescent dosimetry (TLDs). Single and multiple Gamma Unit treatment with the 18mm collimator helmet was given and a Rando tissue equivalent phantom was in place to simulate a patient treatment. TLDs were placed on the phantom to measure the absorbed doses by the organs at risk. Two TLD chips were placed at each of the following organs: eye, thyroid, sternum and gonads. The irradiated TLDs were read with a Vinten TLD system 654D. The TLD factor was determined by irradiating TLDs with a cobalt-60 teletherapy unit of a known dose of radiation.
Results: The average maximum target absorbed dose was 30 Gy. The measured absorbed dose in selected organs from Gamma Unit radiosurgery with one or more isocenters was 21-53 cGy for the eye, 4-8 cGy for the thyroid, 3-4 cGy for the sternum and 2-3 cGy for the gonads. The dose to extracranial sites increased with the number of isocenters. The radiation dose to extracranial sites became much more substantial when multiple isocenters were used.
Conclusions: The potential risk of radiation exposure is radiation induced tumors. No cases have been reported in patients treated with Gamma Unit radiosurgery. Given the benefit of Gamma Unit treatment, the clinical significance of these doses is minimal.