# Performance Improvement of the Acrylic Acid–Polyvinyl Alcohol Gel Dosimeter with an Organic Additive for Radiation Oncology Applications

## TL;DR

This study introduces a new gel dosimeter with glucose that improves accuracy for measuring radiation doses in cancer treatments.

## Contribution

The first acrylic acid–glucose–polyvinyl alcohol gel dosimeter with enhanced performance for radiation oncology.

## Key findings

- The optimal formulation showed a linear dose response up to 30 Gy with high sensitivity.
- The dosimeter is independent of dose rate, energy, and temperature, and stable for 7 days post-irradiation.
- It demonstrates potential for 3D dose verification in modern radiotherapy.

## Abstract

This study reports the first preparation and characterization of an acrylic acid–glucose–polyvinyl alcohol (ACAGLPVA) polymer gel dosimeter incorporating glucose as an organic additive for radiation oncology applications. Five formulations with glucose concentrations of 0, 10, 20, 25, and 30 wt% were irradiated using a 6-MV photon beam at doses of 0–60 Gy, and the transverse relaxation rate (R2) was measured by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) relaxometry. The optimal formulation (25 wt% glucose) demonstrated an excellent linear dose response between 0 and 30 Gy (R2 = 0.9979) with a sensitivity of 0.177 s−1 Gy−1, followed by a non-linear response at 30–60 Gy. The dosimeter exhibited dose rate independence (200–600 cGy/min), energy independence (6–15 MV), temperature independence (5–35 °C), and post-irradiation stability for at least 7 days. These characteristics demonstrate the potential of ACAGLPVA gel dosimeters for accurate three-dimensional dose verification in modern radiotherapy applications.