Abstract
Objective
The purpose of this study is to determine the dose reduction of different shielding materials at various distances from a 177Lu photon radiation source.
Methods
Two protective aprons with lead equivalent thicknesses of 0.25 mm and 0.35 mm and tungsten-containing rubber (TCR) were used as shielding materials. A vial containing 177Lu was sealed in a lead container so that a narrow beam went out through a 3 mm-diameter hole. The dose rate was measured at distances of 0, 10, 50, 100, and 200 cm from the source using a NaI scintillation survey meter to obtain the rate of dose reduction. TCR was tested with thicknesses ranging from 0.3 to 1.0 mm at 0.1 mm intervals and from 1.0 to 4.0 mm at 0.5 mm intervals.
Results
At distances of 0, 10, 50, 100, and 200 cm, the dose reduction for the lead equivalent thickness of 0.25 mm were 32.7%, 54.5%, 93.1%, 97.9%, and 99.6%, respectively; and for the lead equivalent thickness of 0.35 mm were 53.4%, 70.6%, 95.6%, 98.9%, and 99.6%, respectively. Without any shielding, the dose rate decreased by 34.4% at 10 cm and by 88.8% at 50 cm from the radiation source. The dose reduction for the TCR thickness of 3.5 mm was 89.8% at 0 cm and 93.3% at 10 cm. The TCR thickness of 0.4 mm provided a dose reduction comparable to or greater than that of the 0.25 mm lead equivalent, whereas the TCR thickness of 1.0 mm or greater provided a dose reduction comparable to that of the 0.35 mm lead equivalent.
Conclusions
Achieving a reduction of 95% or more requires the 0.25 mm lead equivalent for a distance of 100 cm, the 0.35 mm lead equivalent for 50 cm, the TCR thickness of 0.3 mm for 100 cm, or the TCR thickness of 0.9 mm for 50 cm. Without wearing a protective apron, a reduction of approximately 95% is observed at distances greater than 100 cm. These findings would be useful for medical staff engaging in related activities.
Data availability
The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.
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Acknowledgements
Mark R. Kurban from Edanz (https://www.jp.edanz.com/ac) edited a draft of this paper. This work was supported by JSPS KAKENHI Grant Number 21K07576. No potential conflicts of interest were disclosed.
Funding
This work was supported by JSPS KAKENHI Grant Number 21K07576.
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Okuhata, K., Monzen, H., Nakamura, Y. et al. Effectiveness of shielding materials against 177Lu gamma rays and the corresponding distance relationship. Ann Nucl Med 37, 629–634 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12149-023-01860-x
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12149-023-01860-x