PET dosimetry in proton radiotherapy: a Monte Carlo study

We have used a Monte Carlo program to evaluate the applicability of positron emission tomography to in vivo dosimetry for proton radiotherapy. The transport program PTRAN was utilized to estimate the distribution of positron emitter nuclei produced by proton nuclear inelastic interactions in tissue. A comparison of Monte Carlo results with experimental data available in the literature shows that PET can be a useful tool in proton radiotherapy especially for in vivo Bragg peak localization.