Analysis of influencing factors on the method for determining boron concentration and dose through dual prompt gamma detection

A method based on the cross-sectional relationship between 10 B(n, α ) 7 Li and 1 H(n, γ ) 2 H was proposed to detect and reconstruct the three-dimensional boron concentration/dose distribution in vivo during boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT). Factors such as the neutron energy, fluence rate, and degree of non-uniform distribution of the boron concentration in a voxel may affect the results of this method. A theoretical analysis of the accuracy of the method using a Monte Carlo simulation shows that the determining error is generally less than 1% under different tumor locations and neutron source configurations. When the voxel size is larger than 0.4 cm, the determining error might be higher for a non-uniformly distributed boron concentration in the voxel because of the changes in the neutron energy and fluence rate. In conclusion, the proposed method enables an accurate three-dimensional boron determination in vivo during BNCT.