PION-I. A Monte Carlo Computer Program for Calculations with Negative Pion Beams

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Abstract
An earlier publication (J. E. Turner et al.) described a computer program for calculating depth-dose distributions in water phantoms irradiated by positive or negative pion beams. This program, now called PION-I, was substantially improved and modified with emphasis on applications of negative pions to cancer radiotherapy. Modifications that were made include a much improved treatment of multiple Coulomb scattering, the addition of range straggling, the addition of elastic scattering of pions from heavy nuclei, a new method of computing the neutron dose distribution around pion stars, provisions for calculating cell survival, and the inclusion of a code for computing isodata contours. Calculations with PION-I can also include the effects of inhomogeneities, such as regions of bone, lung, or air in tissue phantoms. A number of examples are given of the kind of information that can be obtained with PION-I. The relative effects of various physical processes on dose distribution patterns are also assessed.