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Purpose: In this study, a dedicated device for ion chamber measurements of absorbed dose-to-water for a Nucletron microSelectron-v2 HDR 192Ir brachytherapy source is presented. The device uses two ionization chambers in a so-called sandwich assembly. Using this setup and by taking the average reading of the two chambers, any dose error due to difficulties in absolute positioning (centering) of the source in between the chambers is cancelled to first order. The method's accuracy was examined by comparing measurements with absorbed dose-to-water determination based on the AAPM TG-43 protocol. Methods: The optimal source-to-chamber distance (SCD) for 192Ir dosimetry was determined from ion chamber measurements in a water phantom. The 192Ir source was sandwiched between two Exradin A1SL chambers (0.057 cm3) at the optimal SCD separation. The measured ionization was converted to the absorbed dose-to-water using a 60Co calibration factor and a Monte Carlo-calculated beam quality conversion factor, kQ, for 60Co to 192Ir. An uncertainty estimate of the proposed method was determined based on reproducibility of measurements at different institutions for the same type of source. Results: The optimal distance for the A1SL chamber measurements was determined to be 5 cm from the 192Ir source center, considering the depth dependency of kQ for 60Co to 192Ir and the chamber positioning. The absorbed dose to water measured at (5 cm, 90°) on the transverse axis was 1.3% lower than TG-43 values and its reproducibility and overall uncertainty were 0.8% and 1.7%, respectively. The measurement doses at anisotropic points agreed within 1.5% with TG-43 values. Conclusions: The ion chamber measurement of absorbed dose-to-water with a sandwich method for the 192Ir source provides a more accurate, direct, and reference dose compared to the dose-to-water determination based on air-kerma strength in the TG-43 protocol. Due to the simple but accurate assembly, the sandwich measurement method is useful for daily dose management of 192Ir sources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Gafchromic film and ionometric calibration procedures for HDR 192Ir brachytherapy sources in terms of dose rate to water are presented and the experimental results are compared to the TG-43 protocol as well as with the absolute dose measurement results from a water calorimetry-based primary standard. Methods: EBT-1 Gafchromic films, an A1SL Exradin miniature Shonka thimble type chamber, and an SI HDR 1000 Plus well-type chamber (Standard Imaging, Inc., Middleton, WI) with an ADCL traceable Sk calibration coefficient (following the AAPM TG-43 protocol) were used. The Farmer chamber and Gafchromic film measurements were performed directly in water. All results were compared to direct and absolute absorbed dose to water measurements from a 4 °C stagnant water calorimeter. Results: Based on water calorimetry, the authors measured the dose rate to water to be 361±7 μGy/(h U) at a 55 mm source-to-detector separation. The dose rate normalized to air-kerma strength for all the techniques agree with the water calorimetry results to within 0.83%. The overall 1-sigma uncertainty on water calorimetry, ionization chamber, Gafchromic film, and TG-43 dose rate measurement amounts to 1.90%, 1.44%, 1.78%, and 2.50%, respectively. Conclusions: This work allows us to build a more realistic uncertainty estimate for absorbed dose to water determination using the TG-43 protocol. Furthermore, it provides the framework necessary for a shift from indirect HDR 192Ir brachytherapy dosimetry to a more accurate, direct, and absolute measurement of absorbed dose to water. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]