Systematics of relative biological effectiveness measurements for proton radiation along the spread out Bragg peak: experimental validation of the local effect model

(distal part of the SOBP). The dose dependence is most pronounced for doses lower than 3 Gy (RBE). However, both the LEM predictions and experimental data show only a weak dependence of RBE on the tissue type, as characterized by the α/β ratio, which is considered insignificant with regard to the general uncertainties of RBE. The RBE predicted by the LEM shows overall very good agreement with the experimental data within the SOBP region and is in better agreement with the experimental data than the constant RBE of 1.1 that is currently applied in the clinics. All RBE trends deduced from the experiments were also reflected by the LEM predictions, which are purely based on input parameters derived from low-LET photon radiation.