Influence of 0.35 T magnetic field on the response of EBT3 and EBT-XD radiochromic films

Purpose: To investigate the inconsistency of recent literature on the effect of magnetic field on the response of radiochromic films, we studied the influence of 0.35 T magnetic field on dosimetric response of EBT3 and EBT-XD Gafchromic^TM films. Methods: Two different models of radiochromic films, EBT3 and EBT-XD, were investigated. Pieces of films samples from two different batches for each model were irradiated at different dose levels ranging from 1 to 20 Gy using 6 MV flattening filter free (FFF) x-rays generated by a clinical MR-guided radiotherapy system (B = 0.35 T). Film samples from the same batch were irradiated at corresponding dose levels using 6 MV FFF beam from a conventional linac (B = 0) for comparison. The net optical density was measured 48 h postirradiation using a flatbed scanner. The absorbance spectra were also measured over 500–700 nm wavelength range using a fiber-coupled spectrometer with 2.5 nm resolution. To study the effect of fractionated dose delivery to EBT3 (/EBT-XD) films, 8 (/16) Gy dose was delivered in four 2 (/4) Gy fractions with 24 h interval between fractions. Results: No significant difference was found in the net optical density and net absorbance of the films irradiated with or without the presence of magnetic field. No dependency on the orientation of the film during irradiation with respect to the magnetic field was observed. The fractionated dose delivery resulted in the same optical density as delivering the whole dose in a single fraction. Conclusions: The 0.35 T magnetic field employed in the ViewRay^® MR-guided radiotherapy system did not show any significant influence on the response of EBT3 and EBT-XD Gafchromic^TM films.