An improved head-and-neck phantom for radiation dosimetry.

To obtain accurate estimates of radiation doses within the head and neck, a phantom was constructed. The osseous structures were represented by a human skull and cervical vertebrae with Mix D simulating the soft tissues originally with the bone. The soft tissues of the head and neck were also represented by this mixture of wax, plastic, magnesium oxide, and titanium dioxide with the x-ray absorption and scattering properties nearly equal to water and soft tissue. Soft tissue thicknesses and facial contours were based on depths reported in the literature and supplemented by cadaver measurements. Air passages, air cells, sinuses, and the oral cavity were left open to accurately simulate the patient. The locations of 16 anatomic sites were based on cadaver dissection and measured relationships to osseous landmarks and the skin surface. To confirm the accuracy of the phantom, doses were measured with lithium fluoride thermoluminescent dosimeters and compared with the results of other investigations reported in the literature.