The simulation of a linear accelerator using Monte Carlo method with EGSnrc Program

Abstract

The Monte Carlo method is considered to be the most accurate algorithm for dose calculation in radiotherapy. Linear accelerator accurate simulation is required as a prior condition for Monte Carlo dose calculation algorithm. In this study, the 6 MV photon beams from a Siemens Primus Linear Accelerator (LINAC) M5497 at the Dong Nai General Hospital was modelled by using EGSnrc. The BEAMnrc và DOSXYZnrc user code were used for simulation the head of LINAC and the dose distribution in water phantom. The percentage depth dose (PDD) and beam profiles (OCR) were calculated and then compared with the measured ones in order to evaluate the simulation accuracy. Excellent agreement was found between simulations and measurements with an average difference of 1.26 % for PDD, less than 2 % for OCR. In addition, the gamma evaluation method for simulation was also performed using an in-house Matlab code. The percentage gamma passing rate was 100% for PDD and 98.5 % for OCR with 3 % dose difference and 3 mm distance to agreement as acceptance criteria. The result showed that we had successfully simulated LINAC with excellent agreement.