Estimates of absorbed dose in different organs in children treated with radium for skin hemangiomas.

Between 1930 and 1959, more than 10,000 infants were treated at Radiumhemmet, Stockholm, with radium (226Ra) needles and/or tubes for hemangioma of the skin. Absorbed dose to the brain, eye lenses, parotid glands, thyroid gland, breast anlage, lungs, stomach, intestine, ovaries, testicles and bone marrow were calculated for each individual. The mean absorbed dose to the different organs ranged from 0.06 to 0.48 Gy. The highest absorbed dose was given to the breast (maximum 47.7 Gy). There was a wide dose range for each organ which was due mainly to differences in the distance between the applicator and the organ. The absorbed dose to all organs decreased on average by 32% during the study period. This was due to a 25% decrease in the treatment time and a change in the distribution of the treatment sites.