Simultaneous measurements of absorbed dose and linear energy transfer in therapeutic proton beams

The biological response resulting from proton therapy depends on both the absorbed dose in the irradiated tissue and the linear energy transfer (LET) of the beam. Currently, optimization of proton therapy treatment plans is based only on absorbed dose. However, recent advances in proton therapy delivery have made it possible to vary the LET distribution for potential therapeutic gain, leading to investigations of using LET as an additional parameter in plan optimization. Having a method to measure and verify both absorbed dose and LET as part of a quality assurance program would be ideal for the safe delivery of such plans. Here we demonstrated the potential of an optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) technique to simultaneously measure absorbed dose and LET. We calibrated the ratio of ultraviolet (UV) to blue emission intensities from Al₂O₃:C OSL detectors as a function of LET to facilitate LET measurements. We also calibrated the intensity of the blue OSL emission for absorbed dose measurements and introduced a technique to correct for the LET-dependent dose response of OSL detectors exposed to therapeutic proton beams. We demonstrated the potential of our OSL technique by using it to measure LET and absorbed dose under new irradiation conditions, including patient-specific proton therapy treatment plans. In the beams investigated, we found the OSL technique to measure dose-weighted LET within 7.9% of Monte Carlo-simulated values and absorbed dose within 2.5% of ionization chamber measurements.