Scatter radiation intensities around a clinical digital breast tomosynthesis unit and the impact on radiation shielding considerations.

PURPOSE

To measure the scattered radiation intensity around a clinical digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT) unit and to provide updated data for radiation shielding design for DBT systems with tungsten-anode x-ray tubes.

METHODS

The continuous distribution of scattered x-rays from a clinical DBT system (Hologic Selenia Dimensions) was measured within an angular range of 0°-180° using a linear-array x-ray detector (X-Scan 0.8f3-512, Detection Technology, Inc., Finland), which was calibrated for the x-ray spectrum range of the DBT unit. The effects of x-ray field size, phantom size, and x-ray kVp/filter combination were investigated. Following a previously developed methodology by Simpkin, scatter fraction was determined for the DBT system as a function of angle around the phantom center. Detailed calculations of the scatter intensity from a DBT system were demonstrated using the measured scatter fraction data.

RESULTS

For the 30 and 35 kVp acquisition, the scatter-to-primary-ratio and scatter fraction data closely matched with data previously measured by Simpkin. However, the measured data from this study demonstrated the nonisotropic distribution of the scattered radiation around a DBT system, with two strong peaks around 25° and 160°. The majority scatter radiation (>70%) originated from the imaging detector assembly, instead of the phantom. With a workload from a previous survey performed at MGH, the scatter air kerma at 1 m from the phantom center for wall/door is 1.76 × 10(-2) mGy patient(-1), for floor is 1.64 × 10(-1) mGy patient(-1), and for ceiling is 3.66 × 10(-2) mGy patient(-1).

CONCLUSIONS

Comparing to previously measured data for mammographic systems, the scatter air kerma from Holgoic DBT is at least two times higher. The main reasons include the harder primary beam with higher workload (measured with total mAs/week), added tomosynthesis acquisition, and strong small angle forward scattering. Due to the highly conservative initial assumptions, the shielding recommendation from NCRP Report 147 is still sufficient for the Hologic DBT system given the workload from a previous survey at MGH. With the data provided from this study, accurate shielding calculation can be performed for Hologic DBT systems with specific workload and barrier distance.