Tissue compensators with use of vinyl lead sheets for head and neck portals on 4‐MV x rays

Tissue compensators made with a high atomic number material are compact and retain the skin‐sparing effect of megavoltage beams. In this note, we have described the use of a commercially available vinyl lead as a material for tissue compensators for use with 4‐MV beams on a Clinac‐4/80. The dosimetric data obtained included the sheet's lead equivalence, thickness ratios, surface dose and buildup region, and transmission factors. The presence of a compensator did not alter the beam's skin‐sparing effects. It was concluded that the vinyl lead sheets allowed an easy and rapid fabrication of a tissue compensator for head and neck portals of up to 15×15 cm.