Radiation doses of medical radiation workers performing low-dose-rate brachytherapy with 198Au grains and 192Ir pins for patients with oral cancers.

OBJECTIVES: Low-dose-rate brachytherapy (LDR-BT) with 198Au grains and 192Ir pins is an essential treatment option for oral cancer due to its high rate of local control and low invasiveness. However, the radiation exposure of medical radiation workers is concerning. Thus, we aimed to determine the radiation dose delivered to medical radiation workers during LDR-BT using 198Au grains and 192Ir pins for oral cancer. METHODS: Thirty-two patients with oral cancer underwent 198Au grain interstitial LDR-BT between June 2016 and May 2023, and 23 patients with tongue cancer underwent 192Ir pin interstitial LDR-BT between March 2015 and November 2017 at our hospital. Dosimetry was performed by attaching a dosimeter to the chest pocket of the operator and assistant during 198Au grain or 192Ir pin LDR-BT. Since the operator also loads 198Au grains into the implantation device, the operator's radiation dose includes the dose received during this preparation. RESULTS: Mean radiation doses of the operators with 198Au grain and 192Ir pin LDR-BT were 165.8 and 211.2 µSv, respectively. Statistically significant differences between the radioactive sources of 198Au grain and 192Ir pin LDR-BT were observed (p = 0.0459). The mean radiation doses of the assistants with 198Au grain and 192Ir pin LDR-BT were 92.0 and 162.0 µSv, respectively. Statistically significant differences were observed between the radioactive sources of 198Au grains and 192Ir pin LDR-BT (p = 0.0003). CONCLUSIONS: Regarding radioactive source differences, 192Ir pin LDR-BT resulted in higher doses delivered to medical radiation workers than 198Au grain LDR-BT.

Efficacy of Supportive Care for Radiodermatitis in Patients with Head and Neck Cancer: Supplementary Analysis of an Exploratory Phase II Trial.

Self-care demonstrated efficacy in preventing severe acute radiation dermatitis among patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma undergoing chemoradiotherapy (CRT). This prospective trial aimed to confirm the feasibility and safety of transcutaneous electrical sensory stimulation while examining the relationship between changes in self-care behavior through supportive care interventions and the severity of acute radiation dermatitis during CRT. Patients underwent assessments for dermatitis grading (Grades 1 to ≥3) and were interviewed regarding self-care practices. The self-care questionnaires comprised six items, and a point was deducted for each task that the patient could not perform independently. Statistical analysis was performed to determine the association between G3 radiation dermatitis and the lowest self-care behavior scores. Of the 10 patients enrolled, three experienced G3 dermatitis. During CRT, six patients maintained their initial scores and did not develop ≥G3 dermatitis. Meanwhile, three of four patients with decreased scores exhibited ≥G3 dermatitis. The group with ≥G3 dermatitis had significantly lower scores than those with ≤G2 dermatitis, suggesting that the inability of patients to perform self-care routinely may lead to severe acute radiation dermatitis. Further prospective studies are needed to confirm the potential of self-care interventions in preventing severe dermatitis.