Evaluation of self-dose values for positron emitters in voxel phantoms

Kinase, Sakae   ; Saito, Kimiaki  

In the present study, Monte Carlo simulations have been carried out to evaluate values - the mean absorbed dose to the target region per unit cumulated activity in the source region - for positron emitters in the brain, the heart and the urinary bladder contents. The positron emitters of interest were four radionuclides that were used for PET imaging: C, N, O and F. The values were evaluated on the Medical Internal Radiation Dose (MIRD) Committee of the Society of Nuclear Medicine Pamphlet No.5 type phantom (MIRD 5 type phantom) and the adult voxel phantoms developed at the Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute (JAERI). Consequently, Monte Carlo simulation and voxel phantoms were found to be useful in the evaluation of the beta dose to organs, in particular to hollow organs such as the urinary bladder. It was also demonstrated that the self-dose values largely depend on the beta-ray energy and the mass of each target region.