Committee on Medical Internal Radiation Dose (MIRD)

Committee on Medical Internal Radiation Dose (MIRD)

Radiation dosimetry provides the fundamental quantities used for radiation protection, risk assessment, and treatment planning. The MIRD Committee develops standard methods, models, assumptions, and mathematical schema for assessing internal radiation doses from administered radiopharmaceuticals. The MIRD approach simplifies the problem of assessing dose for many different radionuclides—each with its unique radiological characteristics and chemical properties as labeled compounds—in the highly diverse biological environment represented by the human body, internal organs, tissues, fluid compartments, and cells. The virtue of the MIRD approach is that it systematically reduces complex dosimetric analyses to methods that are relatively simple to use, including software tools for experimental and clinical use.

Committee Charges

• Develop and provide a standardized framework and methodology for calculation of internal dose quantities in nuclear medicine.
• Compile, evaluate and disseminate data needed to implement standardized internal dosimetry methods including radionuclide decay properties and emissions, energy absorbed fractions and anatomic models.
• Collect and assess experimental and peer-reviewed data to publish dose estimate reports for selected new radiopharmaceuticals which significantly impact the current practice of nuclear medicine.
• Provide peer-reviewed evaluations of proposed new dosimetry models and methods including correlating dose with biological response for cellular, animal and clinical trials data.
• Address other critical and timely dosimetry issues that may impact the current practice of nuclear medicine.
• Develop, test and publish software and internet tools that implement MIRD calculation models and techniques including dose-response data and biological effective or equivalent dose quantities.
• Actively work with other national and international committees through joint meetings and symposia to establish uniformity in dosimetry models, techniques, named special quantities and units of dose and biological response

Committee Reports

• Mid-Winter Meeting Report 2020
• Annual Meeting Report 2019
• Annual Report 2018

Recent Key Accomplishments

• MIRD Pamphlet 26: Joint EANM/MIRD Guidelines for Quantitative ¹⁷⁷Lu SPECT applied for dosimetry of radiopharmaceutical therapy.
• MIRD Pamphlet 25: MIRDcell V2.0 software tool for dosimetric analysis of biological response of multicellular populations.
• MIRD Pamphlet 24: Guidelines for quantitative ¹³¹I SPECT in dosimetry applications.
• MIRD Pamphlet 23: Quantitative SPECT for patient-specific 3-dimensional dosimetry in internal radionuclide therapy.

MIRD Software Tools

• Dynamic Bladder Software Tool. An interactive software application that implements the dynamic bladder model described in MIRD Pamphlet No. 14, Revised.
• Kidney Dose-Response. An interactive application which implements the kidney dosimetry model described in MIRD Pamphlet No. 20. The web tool requires a login and password. The login is 'mird' and the password is 'MIRD'.
• MIRDcell. An interactive software application described in MIRD Pamphlet 25 and in a User Manual that performs radiation absorbed dose and response modeling for cells and numerous geometries of multicellular clusters. New version, Version 3, released in Sept 2021.
• MIRDcalc. The MIRDcalc internal dose calculation software has been developed as a community tool for calculating organ-level radiopharmaceutical dosimetry. The software enables biodistribution-to-dosimetry calculations using the MIRD schema and incorporates calculation-specific details for 333 isotopes (ICRP Publication 107) and a family of 12 ICRP reference phantoms with 81 source organs/regions and 43 target organ/regions and up to 5 spherical tumors. A User Manual is provided.
• MIRDsoft hosts a suite of free software applications designed and developed to support the medical radiation dose community.

MIRD Awards and Education

• Loevinger-Berman Award Presentation
• MIRD Sponsored Continuing Education Courses

MIRD Books

• MIRD Radiobiology and Dosimetry for Radiopharmaceutical Therapy with Alpha-Particle Emitters. This monograph reviews pioneering and current studies related to targeted alpha-particle-emitter therapy and provides guidance and recommendations for human dosimetry.
• MIRD Decay Schemes 2nd Edition. This updated edition of MIRD: Radionuclide Data and Decay Schemes is an essential sourcebook for radiation dosimetry and understanding the properties of radionuclides.
• MIRD Head and Brain Dosimetry. Addresses available neuroimaging applications in nuclear medicine internal dosimetry for both children and adults. Contains comprehensive tables of absorbed fractions and S values for all models and radiopharmaceuticals, along with steps for verifying calculations and tabulations.
• MIRD Supplement to JNM. This compilation of MIRD Pamphlet numbers 14 (revised) through 17 covers the urinary bladder model for radiation dose calculations, radionuclide S values in a revised dosimetric model of the adult head and brain, quantitative radiopharmaceutical biodistribution data acquisition and analysis, and the dosimetry of nonuniform activity distributions.
• MIRD Cellular S Values. Provides tools necessary to estimate the absorbed dose at the cellular level from intracellularly localized radionuclides using cellular S values for emitters of monoenergetic electrons and alpha particles and almost all radionuclides.
• MIRD Primer for Absorbed Dose Calculations, revised (1991). The MIRD Primer is unquestionably the standard reference on absorbed dosage of radiopharmaceuticals in humans, offering a thorough review of absorbed dose calculations used in the application of radiopharmaceuticals to medical studies.

MIRD Pamphlets

• MIRD Pamphlet No. 26: Joint EANM/MIRD Guidelines for Quantitative ¹⁷⁷Lu SPECT applied for dosimetry of radiopharmaceutical therapy. (2016)
• MIRD Pamphlet No. 25: MIRDcell V2.0 software tool for dosimetric analysis of biological response of multicellular populations. (2014)
• MIRD Pamphlet No. 24: Guidelines for quantitative ¹³¹I SPECT in dosimetry applications. (2013)
• MIRD Pamphlet No. 23: Quantitative SPECT for patient-specific 3-dimensional dosimetry in internal radionuclide therapy. (2012)
• MIRD Publication Pamphlet No. 22 (Abridged): Radiobiology and Dosimetry of α-Particle Emitters for Targeted Radionuclide Therapy. (2010)
• MIRD Pamphlet No. 22: Radiobiology and Dosimetry of Alpha-Particle Emitters for Targeted Radionuclide Therapy. (2010)
• MIRD Pamphlet No. 21: A Generalized Schema for Radiopharmaceutical Dosimetry—Standardization of Nomenclature. (2009)
• MIRD Pamphlet No. 20: The Effect of Model Assumptions on Kidney Dosimetry and Response—Implications for Radionuclide Therapy. (2008)
• MIRD Pamphlet No. 19: Absorbed Fractions and Radionuclide S Values for Six Age-Dependent Multiregion Models of the Kidney. (2003)
• MIRD Pamphlet No. 18: Administered Cumulated Activity for Ventilation Studies. (2001)
• MIRD Perspective 1999
• MIRD Pamphlet No. 17: The Dosimetry of Nonuniform Activity Distributions—Radionuclide S Values at the Voxel Level. J Nucl Med 1999; 40:11S-36S; MIRD Supplement. (1999)
• MIRD Pamphlet No. 16: Techniques for Quantitative Radiopharmaceutical Biodistribution Data Acquisition and Analysis for Use in Human Radiation Dose Estimates. (1999)
• MIRD Pamphlet No. 15: Radionuclide S Values in a Revised Dosimetric Model of the Adult Head and Brain. (1999)
• MIRD Pamphlet No. 14 Revised: A Dynamic Urinary Bladder Model for Radiation Dose Calculations. (1999)
• MIRD Pamphlet No. 13: Specific Absorbed Fractions for Photon Sources Uniformly Distributed in the Heart Chambers and Heart Wall.
• MIRD Pamphlet No. 12: Kinetic Models for Absorbed Dose Calculations (1977).
• MIRD Pamphlet No. 11: S, Absorbed Dose per Unit Cumulated Activity for Selected Radionuclides and Organs (1975).
• MIRD Pamphlet No. 10: Radionuclide Decay Schemes and Nuclear Parameters for Use in Radiation-Dose Estimation (1975). Superseded by MIRD Decay Schemes 2nd Edition.
• MIRD Pamphlet No. 9: Radiation Dose to Humans from ⁷⁵Se-L-Selenomethionine (April 1972). J. Nucl. Med. 13, Supplement Number 6.
• MIRD Pamphlet No. 8: Absorbed Fractions for Small Volumes Containing Photon Emitting Radioactivity (1971). J. Nucl. Med. 12, Supplement No. 5, 25-32.
• MIRD Pamphlet No. 7: Distribution of Absorbed Dose Around Point Sources of Electrons and Beta Particles in Water and Other Media (1971). J. Nucl. Med. 12, Supplement No. 5, 5-23.
• MIRD Pamphlet No. 6: Radionuclide Decay Schemes and Nuclear Parameters for Use in Radiation-Dose Estimation, Part 2. Superseded by MIRD Decay Schemes 2nd Edition.
• MIRD Pamphlet No. 5, Revised: Estimates of Absorbed Fractions for Photon Sources Uniformly Distributed in Various Organs of a Heterogeneous Phantom (1978).
• MIRD Pamphlet No. 4: Radionuclide Decay Schemes and Nuclear Parameters for Use in Radiation-Dose Estimation. Superseded by MIRD Decay Schemes 2nd Edition.
• MIRD Pamphlet No. 3: Absorbed Fractions for Photon Dosimetry (1968). J. Nucl. Med. 9, Supplement No. 1, 27-39.
• MIRD Pamphlet No. 2: Energy Deposition in Water by Photons from Point Isotropic Sources (1968). J. Nucl. Med. 9, Supplement No. 1, 15-25.
• MIRD Pamphlet No. 1, Revised: A Revised Schema for Calculating the Absorbed Dose from Biologically Distributed Radionuclides (1975). Superseded by MIRD Primer for Absorbed Dose Calculations, revised (1991).
• MIRD Pamphlet No. 1: A Schema for Absorbed-dose Calculations for Biologically Distributed Radionuclides (1968). J. Nucl. Med. 9, Supplement No. 1, 7-14. Superseded by MIRD Primer for Absorbed Dose Calculations, revised (1991).

MIRD Dose Estimate Reports

• MIRD Dose Estimate Report 20: Radiation absorbed-dose estimates for ¹¹¹In- and ⁹⁰Y-Ibritumomab Tiuxetan. (2009)
• MIRD Dose Estimate Report 19: Radiation absorbed dose estimates from ¹⁸F-FDG. (2002)
• MIRD Dose Estimate Report 18: Radiation absorbed dose estimates for indium-111-labeled B72.3, an IgG antibody to ovarian and colorectal cancer. (1998)
• MIRD Dose Estimate Report 17: Radiation absorbed dose estimates from inhaled krypton-81m gas in lung imaging. (1993)
• MIRD Dose Estimate Report 16: Radiation absorbed dose from technetium-99m-diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid aerosol. (1992)
• MIRD Dose Estimate Report 15: Radiation dose estimates for radio-indium labeled autologous platelets. J. Nucl Med. 1992; 33:777-780.
• MIRD Dose Estimate Report 14: Radiation absorbed dose from technetium-99m-labeled red blood cells. (1990)
• MIRD Dose Estimate Report 13: Radiation absorbed dose from technetium-99m-labeled bone imaging agents. (1989).
• MIRD Dose Estimate Report 12: Radiation dose from Tc-99m diethylaminepentaacetic acid (DTPA). J. Nucl. Med. 1984; 25:503-505.
• MIRD Dose Estimate Report 11: Radiation absorbed doses from iron-52, iron-55, and iron-59 used to study ferrokinetics. J. Nucl. Med. 1983; 24:339-348.
• MIRD Dose Estimate Report 10: Radiation absorbed dose from albumin microspheres labeled with Technetium-99m. J. Nucl. Med. 1982; 23:915-917.
• MIRD Dose Estimate Report 9: Radioxenons in lung imaging. J. Nucl. Med. 1980;21:459-465.
• MIRD Dose Estimate Report 8. Summary of current radiation dose estimates to normal humans from ^99mTc as sodium pertechnetate. J. Nucl. Med. 1976;17:74-77.
• MIRD Dose Estimate Report 7: I-123, I-124, I-126, I-130, and I-131 as sodium rose Bengal. J. Nucl. Med. 1975; 16:1214-1217.
• MIRD Dose Estimate Report 6: Summary of current radiation dose estimates to humans from ¹⁹⁷Hg- and ²⁰³Hg-labeled chlormerodrin. J. Nucl. Med. 1975; 16:1095-1098.
• MIRD Dose Estimate Report 5: Summary of current radiation dose estimates to humans from ¹²³I, ¹²⁴I, ¹²⁵I, ¹²⁶I, ¹³⁰I, ¹³¹I, and ¹³²I as sodium iodide. J. Nucl. Med. 1975; 16:857-860.
• MIRD Dose Estimate Report 4: Summary of current radiation dose estimates to humans with various liver conditions from ¹⁹⁸Au-colloidal gold. J. Nucl. Med. 1975; 16:173-174.
• MIRD Dose Estimate Report 3: Summary of current radiation dose estimates to humans with various liver conditions from ^99mTc-sulfur colloid. J. Nucl. Med. 1975; 16:108A-108B.
• MIRD Dose Estimate Report 2: Summary of current radiation dose estimates to humans from ⁶⁶Ga-, ⁶⁷Ga-, ⁶⁸Ga-,⁷²Ga-citrate. J. Nucl. Med. 1973; 14:755-756.
• MIRD Dose Estimate Report 1: Summary of current radiation dose estimates to humans from ⁷⁵Se-selenomethionine. J. Nucl. Med. 1973; 14:49-50.

MIRD Commentaries

• MIRD Commentary: Proposed Name for a Dosimetry Unit Applicable to Deterministic Biological Effects—The Barendsen (Bd). (2009). This commentary makes a case for the introduction of a new unit for reporting the ICRU recommended quantity of equieffective dose.
• The MIRD Perspective 1999. (1999). This commentary reviews the history of the MIRD Schema, and presents the key equations that constitute the method. It clarifies misconceptions regarding presumed limitations of the MIRD Schema by describing its use for nonuniform distributions of radioactivity, and spatial scales ranging from organ, suborgan, multicellular and cellular. Furthermore, it describes the importance of connecting MIRD absorbed dose calculations with observed biological effects thereby setting the stage for integrating the MIRD Schema and radiobiology.
• Application of the Effective Dose Equivalent to Nuclear Medicine Patients: (1993). This commentary explains the MIRD Committee’s position on the use of effective dose equivalent in nuclear medicine. “while the use of effective dose equivalent may well be appropriate for group considerations such as radiation protection for occupationally cx posed groups of workers (including those in nuclear medicine) and volunteers entering investigational protocols, it is inappropriate to use the effective dose equivalent for individual patients undergoing nuclear medicine procedures.”
• Activities of the Medical Internal Dose Committee. Edward M. Smith. J Nucl Med 1968; Supplement Number 1, 5-6.

Past MIRD Committee Members (1968- present)

S James Adelstein

Harold L. Atkins

Martin J. Berger

Mones Berman

Monte Blau (Chair)

A. Bertrand Brill

Gordon L. Brownell

Thomas F. Budinger

Roger J. Cloutier (Chair)

Karin R. Corey

Thomas Dillman

William H. Ellet

Frederick Fahey

Marguerite T. Hays

R Eugene Johnston

Amin I. Kassis

Katherine A. Lathrop

John S. Laughlin

Robert Loevinger

Carol Marcus

John McAfee

Kenneth R. McCormack

Ruby F. Meredith

Jonathan P. Miller

Richard Peterson

John W. Poston

James S. Robertson

Robert H. Rohrer

Jeffry A. Siegel

Edward M. Smith (Chair)

Walter Snyder

Michael G. Stabin

Stephen R. Thomas (Chair)

Henry N. Wagner, Jr.

Evelyn Watson (Chair)

David Weber (Chair)

Henry N. Wellman

Barry W. Wessels

Committee Members