[Tangential pendulum irradiation of the thoracic wall with co-60 during radiation therapy of surgically treated cancers of the breast: comparison of measurement and computation methods for irradiation planning (author's transl)].

The irradiation technique for tangential pendulum 60-Co-irradiation of the thoracic wall is described, and the possibility of a homogeneous irradiation of the thoracic region of interest by means of individual irradiation planning together with a careful, but practicable, technique of positioning and adjustment is shown. The radiation load to the lung can be kept on a moderate level. Phantom measurements with thermoluminescence probes, films and an ionization chamber have been performed for three typical forms of the thorax. Dose distributions thus obtained show a satisfying accordance with calculated values of the dose, the deviations amounting to 3 to 8%. The EDP program applied, COMRAD, thus permits computation of individual pendulum isodoses with sufficient accuracy in practice, and therefore, may be used regularly.