TITLE:
Dosimetric Verification of Blood Component Irradiation Using a Clinical Linear Accelerator: Methodology and Quality Assurance
AUTHORS:
Ayman G. Ibrahim, Hesham S. El-Bahkiry, Osama Abbas, Ahmed E. Ali, Reda M. Radwan, Mahmoud F. Moustafa, Doaa G. Mahmoud
KEYWORDS:
Blood Irradiation, Linear Accelerator, Quality Assurance, TA-GVHD
JOURNAL NAME:
International Journal of Medical Physics, Clinical Engineering and Radiation Oncology,
Vol.15 No.4,
November
10,
2026
ABSTRACT: Purpose: Irradiation of blood components is a standard protocol for preventing transfusion-associated graft-versus-host disease (TA-GVHD) in immunocompromised recipients. Utilizing a Linear Accelerator (LINAC) enhances quality assurance by providing precise dose delivery and uniform radiation distribution, ensuring both component efficacy and patient safety. Materials and Methods: This method uses a specific blood irradiation device, such as a linear accelerator to achieve lymphocyte suppression while preserving the integrity of other blood cells. The technical calibration protocol for blood irradiators includes a comprehensive assessment of absolute dose rate distribution throughout the blood bag. Results: Quality assurance (QA) for the Varian CL2100 CD linear accelerator was performed using only 6 MV photon energy. All measured parameters were following acceptance test specifications and exhibited favorable agreement with published tolerance values from comparable facilities. The measured central dose meets the standard protocol for 2500 cGy within the allowed ±5% measuring uncertainty. This keeps the doses of all the parts well within the regulatory limits (1500 - 5000 cGy) needed for safe and effective clinical irradiation. Dose calculation at any point (e.g., Point 9) = 2500 × 1.018 = 2545 cGy, with an acceptable tolerance of ±5%. Conclusion: Quality assurance tools for analyzing the doses provided throughout the canister in a linear accelerator to irradiation and radiation-sensitive indicator labels offer visual validation of completed irradiation. It is recommended to perform irradiation as close as possible to the time of transfusion. This approach minimizes the storage duration after irradiation to the shortest possible number of days.