Physical Radiation Enhancement Effects Around Clinically Relevant Clusters of Nanoagents in Biological Systems

Here we show that the determining factor for physical radiation enhancement effects for a clinically realistic cluster of heavy-atom bearing nanoparticles is the total number of heavy atoms packed into the cluster. We do this through a multiscale Monte Carlo approach which permits the consideration of radiation transport through clusters of millions of nanoparticles. The finding is in contrast to that predicted when isolated nanoparticles are...