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Abstract

Background
Computed tomography (CT) is one of the crucial diagnostic tools in modern medicine. However, careful monitoring of radiation dose for CT patients is essential since the procedure involves ionizing radiation, a known carcinogen.
Materials and Methods
The most desirable CT dose descriptor for risk analysis is the organ absorbed dose. A variety of CT organ dose calculators currently available were reviewed in this article.
Results and Discussion
Key common elements included in CT dose calculators were discussed and compared, such as computational human phantoms, CT scanner models, organ dose database, effective dose calculation methods, tube current modulation modeling, and user interface platforms.
Conclusion
It is envisioned that more research needs to be conducted to more accurately map CT coverage on computational human phantoms, to automatically segment organs and tissues for patient-specific dose calculations, and to accurately estimate radiation dose in the cone beam computed tomography process during image-guided radiation therapy.

Affiliations

Choonsik Lee
Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Rockville, MD, USA