Mass-manufacturable scintillation-based optical fiber dosimeters for brachytherapy.

Scintillation-based fiber dosimeters are a powerful tool for minimally invasive localized real-time monitoring of the dose rate during Low Dose Rate (LDR) and High Dose Rate (HDR) brachytherapy (BT). This paper presents the design, fabrication, and characterization of such dosimeters, consisting of scintillating sensor tips attached to polymer optical fiber (POF). The sensor tips consist of inorganic scintillators, i.

Dosimetric Application of Phosphorus Doped Fibre for X-ray and Proton Therapy.

Phosphorous-doped silica optical fibres with a core diameter of 4 µm were tested in X-ray and proton fields for application in cancer therapy dosimetry. Specifically, the radiation-induced attenuation was investigated in terms of linearity in deposited dose in 15 MV and 6 MV photons and 74 MeV protons, as well as Bragg-peak detection along the proton track. Fibres were found to demonstrate linear relative dose response in both radiation modalities, but possible saturation did occur at the high linear energy transfer of the Bragg peak.

Atrial fibrillation ablation in patients with transthyretin cardiac amyloidosis.

Aims: Atrial fibrillation (AF) occurs in as many as 70% of patients with transthyretin cardiac amyloidosis (ATTR CA). The aim of our study was to investigate the impact of AF ablation on freedom from recurrent arrhythmia, hospitalization for AF or heart failure (HF), and mortality.

Methods And Results: This was a retrospective observational cohort study of 72 patients with ATTR CA and AF, of whom 24 underwent AF ablation and were matched in a 2:1 manner based on age, gender, ATTR CA stage, New York Heart Association functional class, ejection fraction, and date of AF diagnosis with 48 patients with ATTR CA and AF undergoing medical management.

Benchmarking a novel inorganic scintillation detector for applications in radiation therapy.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to investigate the contribution of Cerenkov radiation to the overall signal measured with a novel inorganic scintillating detector (ISD).

Methods: An ISD based on terbium doped gadolinium oxysulphide (GdOS:Tb) was used. A hyperspectral technique separated the Cerenkov signal from the radioluminescence (RL) signal of the ISD.

Cardiac devices in patients with transthyretin amyloidosis: Impact on functional class, left ventricular function, mitral regurgitation, and mortality.

Background: The aim of our study was to investigate outcomes of patients with ATTR (amyloidosis and transthyretin) CA (cardiac amyloidosis) and implantable devices with respect to left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), mitral regurgitation (MR), New York Heart Association (NYHA) functional class, and mortality.

Methods: This was a retrospective observational cohort study of 78 patients with ATTR CA and implantable devices. During a mean follow-up of 42 months we investigated the impact of right ventricular (RV) pacing burden and biventricular (BiV) pacing on LVEF, MR severity, NYHA functional class, and mortality.

A Monte Carlo study of the effect of an ultrasound transducer on surface dose during intrafraction motion imaging for external beam radiation therapy.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to estimate changes in surface dose due to the presence of the Clarity Autoscan™ ultrasound (US) probe during prostate radiotherapy using Monte Carlo (MC) methods.

Methods: MC models of the Autoscan US probe were developed using the BEAMnrc/DOSXYZnrc code based on kV and MV CT images. CT datasets were converted to voxelized mass density phantoms using a CT number-to-mass density calibration.