Effect of wedge filter and field size on photoneutron dose equivalent for an 18 MV photon beam of a medical linear accelerator

Photoneutrons produced during radiation therapy with high energy photons is the main source of unwanted out-of-field received doses of patients. To analyze the neutron dose equivalent (NDE) for wedged beams and its variation with field size, Monte Carlo (MC) modeling of an 18 MV photon beam was performed using MCNPX MC code. The results revealed that the NDE is on average 6.5 times higher for wedged beams. For open beams, the NDE decreased with increasing field size especially for field sizes >20 X 20 cm(2). While, for wedged beams, the NDE increased with field size. It was suggested that the increase of NDE for wedged beams should be taken into account in radiation-induced secondary cancer risk estimations and radiation protection calculations. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.