An Evaluation of the Effectiveness of the Structural Radiation Shielding Barriers of a Radiation Therapy Facility: Cancer Institute of Guyana Parmeshwarie Seodat 2 , Petal P Surujpaul 1* and Deivis Errada 2 1 Department of Radiology, Medical Physicist at Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation, University of Guyana, Guyana 2 Medical Physicist at Cancer Institute of Guyana, University of Guyana, Guyana * Corresponding author: PP Surujpaul, Department of Radiology, Medical Physicist at Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation, East & Thomas Streets, North Cummingsburg, Georgetown, Georgetown, Demerara 00000, University of Guyana, Guyana, Tel: +1592-650-076; E-mail: psurujpaul@gmail.com Received date: Feb 09, 2018; Accepted date: Feb 22, 2018; Published date: Feb 27, 2018 Copyright: © 2017 Seodat P, et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. Abstract This project thoroughly investigates the integrity of the structural radiation shielding barriers of the radiation therapy facility of Cancer Institute of Guyana which houses a Linear Accelerator (LINAC) of 6 MV. The LINAC comprises a retractable beam stopper which renders all barriers of the bunker as secondary. However, the barriers that receive the primary incidence of the beam at the gantry angles 900 and 2700, Walls A and B, have been annotated as primary. In addition, for the other barriers, a phantom was used in making measurements for scatter. The bunker at Cancer Institute has been in existence since 2006. Therefore, the primary aim of this study is to validate the effectiveness of the structural radiation barriers of the radiation therapy facility through measurements and computations of the Instantaneous, Time Averaged and Weekly Dose Rates of the barriers and calculations of the attenuation coefficients using the Tenth value layer of the existing shielding material, concrete. The results gathered serve as a basis for comparative analysis to the Institute’s Commissioning Report and the International Standards. The Instantaneous measurements were recorded using the Fluke Biomedical Ionization Chamber. The results of the project annotate that the radiation shielding barriers at Cancer Institute of Guyana are very effective. The instantaneous dose rates recorded by the ionization chamber of the existing barriers were significantly lower than those calculated. The time averaged and weekly dose rates were very low as well. Scattered radiation measured conformed with the international standard of being less than 0.1% of the primary beam. However, calculations for barrier thicknesses required were higher than the existing barrier thicknesses. This was as a result of the field size parameter of the LINAC being utilized at its maximum. Nevertheless, these verifications of the effectiveness of the radiation shielding barriers were in conformity to the stipulated standards and well below calculated outcomes. Keywords Radiotherapy; TLD; Ionizing radiation; Dose; (OEP) Occupationally exposed personnel Introduction Cancer Institute of Guyana (CIG) is a multi-modality imaging facility that has been operational since 2006. Tis Institution sits on the coastal belt in the capital city of Georgetown, at the corner of Lamaha and East streets, and to the East-north eastern side of the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (~1.16 km from the Atlantic Ocean) [1]. Interiorly, all ionizing radiation modalities are located from the western to southern sides of the building while the non-ionizing departments are housed on the eastern side. Te ionizing radiation modalities include computed tomography, mammography and x-ray (on the western side) and radiotherapy (with linear accelerator with an energy of 6 MV for photons and a range of energies for electron beams from 5,7,8,10,12 and 14 MeV) to the southern end of the building. Non-ionizing services ofered include ultrasonography, chemotherapy and medical consultancy/gynecology [2]. Seeing that the occupancy factor (T) on the western side of the building housing the ionizing radiation modalities is high (where T=1), primary structural shielding barriers have been incorporated. Te purpose of this incorporation is to reduce the amount of unnecessary ionizing radiation exposure to members of the public, patients and occupationally exposed personnel whose annual dose limits are 1 mSv and 20 mSv, respectively [3]. At Cancer Institute of Guyana, the linear accelerator has a retractable beam-stopper or beam-shield that acts as a primary barrier, since the average transmission of the beam-stopper does not exceed 0.1% of the primary beam. Terefore, it is safe to say that the radiation therapy bunker has no primary barriers; all barriers are considered secondary [4]. Tis project seeks to evaluate the efectiveness of the radiation shielding of the radiation therapy department of the facility by means of weekly and instantaneous dose rate measurements. Tese will be done with the utilization of an ionization chamber. In addition, the project also encompasses comparisons of the structural shielding from the time of commissioning of the machinery to present day; in an efort to assess the impacts of these changes (in equipment) on the structural shielding barriers of the facility [5]. Together with that, the researcher aims at assessing the attenuation coefcients of each shielding barrier, via the tenth value layer of the existing shielding material of the barriers (concrete) and making an overall comparison of the results gained from these existing measurements to the international standards governing radiation protection in radiotherapy [6]. J o u r n a l o f M e d i c a l D i a g n o s t i c M e t h o d s ISSN: 2168-9784 Journal of Medical Diagnostic Methods Seodat et al., J Med Diagn Meth 2018, 7:1 DOI: 10.4172/2168-9784.1000265 Research Article Open Access J Med Diagn Meth, an open access journal ISSN:2168-9784 Volume 7 • Issue 1 • 1000265