Gamma Putty dosimetric studies in electron beam

Traditionally, lead has been used for field shaping in megavoltage electron beams in radiation therapy. In this study, we analyze the dosimetric parameters of a nontoxic, high atomic number (Z = 83), bismuth-loaded material called Gamma Putty that is malleable and can be easily molded to any desired shape. First, we placed an ionization chamber at different depths in a solid water phantom under a Gamma Putty shield of thickness (t = 0, 3, 5, 10, 15, 20, and 25 mm, respectively) and measured the ionizing radiation on the central axis (CAX) for electron beam ranging in energies from 6 to 20 MeV. Next, we investigated the relationship between the relative ionization (RI) measured at a fixed depth for several Gamma Putty shield at different cutout diameters ranging from 2 to 5 cm for various beam energies and derived an exponential fitting equation for clinical purposes. The dose profiles along the CAX show that bremsstrahlung dominates for Gamma Putty thickness >15 mm. For high-energy beams (12–20 MeV) and all Gamma Putty thicknesses up to 25 mm, RI below 5% could not be achieved due to the strong bremsstrahlung component. However, Gamma Putty is a very suitable material for reducing the transmission factor below 5% and protecting underlying normal tissues for low-energy electron beams (6–9 MeV).