Dosimetric study of a brachytherapy treatment of esophagus with Brazilian ¹⁹²Ir sources using an anthropomorphic phantom

Several radioisotopes are produced at Instituto de Pesquisas Energéticas e Nucleares for the use in medical treatments, including the activation of ¹⁹²Ir sources. These sources are suitable for brachytherapy treatments, due to their low or high activity, depending on the concentration of ¹⁹²Ir, easiness to manufacture, small size, stable daughter products and the possibility of re-utilization. They may be used for the treatment of prostate, cervix, head and neck, skin, breast, gallbladder, uterus, vagina, lung, rectum, and eye cancer treatment. In this work, the use of some ¹⁹²Ir sources was studied for the treatment of esophagus cancer, especially the dose determination of important structures, such as those on the mediastinum. This was carried out utilizing a FASH anthropomorphic phantom and the MCNP5 Monte Carlo code to transport the radiation through matter. It was possible to observe that the doses at lungs, breast, esophagus, thyroid and heart were the highest, which was expected due to their proximity to the source. Therefore, the data are useful to assess the representative dose specific to brachytherapy treatments on the esophagus for radiation protection purposes. - Author-Highlights: • The use of brachytherapy sources was studied for the treatment of esophagus cancer. • FASH anthropomorphic phantom and MCNP5 Monte Carlo code were employed. • The doses at lungs, breast, esophagus, thyroid and heart were the highest. • The data is useful to assess the representative doses of treatments on the esophagus