Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41902076›Full record

ReviewSensors (Basel, Switzerland)2026

Measurement of Percentage Depth-Dose Distributions in Clinical Dosimetry: Conventional Techniques and Emerging Sensor Technologies.

Giada Petringa, Luigi Raffaele, Giacomo Cuttone, Mariacristina Guarrera, Alma Kurmanova, Roberto Catalano, Giuseppe Antonio Pablo Cirrone

Abstract readReview
In one paragraph

Review in Sensors (Basel, Switzerland), 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

Giada PetringaLaboratori Nazionali del Sud (LNS), Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare (INFN), 95123 Catania, Italy.
Luigi RaffaeleLaboratori Nazionali del Sud (LNS), Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare (INFN), 95123 Catania, Italy.
Giacomo CuttoneLaboratori Nazionali del Sud (LNS), Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare (INFN), 95123 Catania, Italy.ORCID 0000-0002-9534-4855
Mariacristina GuarreraLaboratori Nazionali del Sud (LNS), Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare (INFN), 95123 Catania, Italy.ORCID 0009-0008-5799-644X
Alma KurmanovaLaboratori Nazionali del Sud (LNS), Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare (INFN), 95123 Catania, Italy.ORCID 0009-0008-5965-8276
Roberto CatalanoLaboratori Nazionali del Sud (LNS), Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare (INFN), 95123 Catania, Italy.
Giuseppe Antonio Pablo CirroneLaboratori Nazionali del Sud (LNS), Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare (INFN), 95123 Catania, Italy.ORCID 0000-0001-5733-9281

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Percentage depth-dose (PDD) distributions are fundamental to characterizing radiation beams in radiotherapy. This review provides an overview of both methods and sensor technologies for measuring PDD in photon, electron, proton, and carbon-ion beams. We summarize conventional dosimetry techniques, including water-phantom scanning with ionization chambers (cylindrical and parallel-plate) and radiochromic film, and discuss their strengths (established accuracy, calibration traceability) and limitations (volume averaging, delayed readout). We then examine emerging sensor technologies designed to improve spatial resolution, speed, and radiation hardness: multi-layer ionization chambers and Faraday cups for one-shot PDD acquisition; scintillator-based detectors (liquid, plastic, and fiber-optic) enabling real-time and high-resolution depth-dose measurements; advanced semiconductor detectors including silicon carbide diodes; as well as novel approaches such as ionoacoustic range sensing for proton beams. For each modality and detector type, we emphasize clinical relevance, measurement accuracy, spatial resolution, radiation durability, and suitability for high dose-per-pulse environments (e.g., FLASH radiotherapy). Current challenges, such as detector response in regions of steep dose gradient, saturation or recombination at ultra-high dose rates, and energy-dependent sensitivity in mixed radiation fields, are analyzed in detail. We also highlight the limitations of each technique and discuss ongoing improvements and prospects for clinical implementation. In summary, no single detector technology fully satisfies all requirements for fast, high-accuracy, high-resolution, radiation-hard PDD measurement, but the integration of emerging sensor innovations into clinical dosimetry promises to enhance the precision and efficiency of radiotherapy quality assurance.

Indexed as

RadiometryHumansRadiotherapy Dosagedetectorsdosimetrypercentage depth–dose distributionradiotherapyrelative dosimetry

Identifiers

PMID41902076
PMCPMC13030451

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.