Treatment of Uncertainties in Radiation Dosimetry

Published

August 18, 2009

Author(s)

Michael G. Mitch, Larry DeWerd, Ronaldo Minniti, J Williamson

Abstract

When one perform a physical measurement or a Monte Carlo simulation and obtains a numerical result, the following questions may be asked. How accurate is the result? Is the measurement or simulation method of high quality? Can the result be meaningfully compared with those of other laboratories, including primary standards laboratories? To answer these questions, it is necessary to assign an uncertainty to the result of the measurement of calculation. The uncertainty represents how confident the investigator is that the result is indicative of the "true" value of the quantity they e attempting to determine. Performing a rigorous uncertainty analysis is a critical element of the science of metrology, as it provides not only a means of assessing the quality of a measurements or calculation but allows a quantitative comparison of results to be made. In the sections that follow, the methods for determining uncertainties will be discussed, along with how these methods are applied to the calculation of uncertainties in dosimetry measurements and calculations, for primary standards to clinical practice.

Citation

Clinical Dosimetry Measurements in Radiotherapy

Publisher Info

AAPM, College Park, MD

Pub Type

Book Chapters

Download Paper

Local Download

Keywords

absorbed dose, brachytherapy, dosimetry, external beam, uncertainty

Citation

Mitch, M. , DeWerd, L. , Minniti, R. and Williamson, J. (2009), Treatment of Uncertainties in Radiation Dosimetry, Clinical Dosimetry Measurements in Radiotherapy, AAPM, College Park, MD, [online], https://tsapps.nist.gov/publication/get_pdf.cfm?pub_id=901333 (Accessed April 16, 2024)