Analiza wpływu dokładności pozycjonowania urządzenia QUICKCHECKwebline na pomiar parametrów wiązki promieniowania.

Zapewnienie jakości leczenia radioterapeutycznego zależy od fizycznych parametrów wiązki promieniowania jonizującego. QUICKCHECKwebline T42031 jest urządzeniem pomiarowym wykorzystywanym do kontroli jakości oraz stabilności pracy akceleratora medycznego wykorzystywanego w radioterapii. Urządzenie to mierzy dawkę w osi centralnej (CAX), stałość profili wiązki, jej symetrię, czy na przykład indeks jakości promieniowania (BQF). Pomiary zostały wykonane na aparacie TrueBeam firmy Varian (Varian Medical System, Palo Alto, USA). Urządzenie podczas codziennych pomiarów było pozycjonowane zarówno za pomocą centratorów laserowych jak i za pomocą krzyża symulacji świetlnej. Celem tej pracy było zbadanie wpływu dokładności ułożenia aparatury pomiarowej na parametry wiązki promieniowania.

The use of aperture shape controller and convergence mode in radiotherapy treatment planning

Aim: Studying the use of Aperture Shape Controller (ASC) and Convergence Mode (CM) in Eclipse (Varian Medical System) in terms of plan quality and complexity of volumetric modulated arc therapy (VMAT). Materials and methods: Forty VMAT plans were re-optimised for the prostate, prostate + lymph nodes, breast and head & neck patients retrospectively, changing the ASC settings (off, moderate, very high) and CM settings (off, on and extended). Results: Using ‘on’ or ‘extended’ CM increased plan quality in terms of planning target volume homogeneity and low-dose spread to the organs at risk (OAR). ‘Extended’ CM increased the optimisation time 4·3-fold compared to ‘on’, and deteriorated the plan quality in several simple planning cases. ‘Moderate’ ASC decreased plan complexity with minor effect on plan quality compared to ‘off’, but ‘very high’ ASC had larger adverse dosimetric effects. However, the ASC decreased the plan complexity only if the CM was turned ‘on’. Findings: Using ‘on’ CM increases the plan quality but using ‘extended’ CM is not recommended. The ‘moderate’ ASC decreased complexity without significant adverse effects on plan quality, and even ‘very high’ ASC may be used when plan simplicity is prioritised. However, if CM is not used, the ASC should also be turned off.

GTV volume estimation using different mode of computer tomography for lung tumors in stereotactic body radiation therapy

Aim: To estimate the Gross Tumor Volume (GTV) using different modes (axial, helical, slow, KV-CBCT & 4D-CT) of computed tomography (CT) in pulmonary tumors. Materials & Methods: We have retrospectively included ten previously treated case of carcinoma of primary lung or metastatic lung using Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy (SBRT) in this study. All the patients underwent 4 modes of CT scan Axial, Helical, Slow & 4D-CT using GE discovery 16 Slice PET-CT scanner and daily KV-CBCT for the daily treatment verification. For standardization, all the patients underwent different modes of scan using 2.5 mm slice thickness, 16 detectors rows and field of view of 400mm. Slow CT was performed using axial mode scan by increasing the CT tube rotation time (typically 3 – 4 sec.) as per the breathing period of the patients. 4D-CT scans were performed and the entire respiratory cycle was divided into ten phases. Maximum Intensity Projections (MIP), Minimum Intensity Projections (MinIP) and Average Intensity Projections (AvIP) were derived from the 10 phases. GTV volumes were delineated for all the patients in all the scanning modes (GTVAX - Axial, GTVHL - Helical, GTVSL – Slow, GTVMIP -4DCT and GTVCB – KV-CBCT) in the Eclipse treatment planning system version 11.0 (M/S Varian Medical System, USA). GTV volumes were measured, documented and compared with the different modes of CT scans. Results: The mean ± standard deviation (range) for MIP, slow, axial, helical & CBCT were 36.5 ± 40.5 (2.29 – 87.0), 35.38 ± 39.52 (2.1 – 82), 31.95 ± 37.29 (1.32 – 66.9), 28.98 ± 33.36 (1.01 – 65.9) & 37.16 ± 42.23 (2.29 – 92). Overall underestimation of helical scan and axial scan compared to MIP is 21% and 12.5%. CBCT and slow CT volume has a good correlation with the MIP volume. Conclusion: For SBRT in lung tumors better to avoid axial and helical scan for target delineation. MIP is a still a golden standard for the ITV delineation, but in the absence of 4DCT scanner, Slow CT and KV-CBCT data may be considered for ITV delineation with caution.

Selection of gamma analysis acceptance criteria in IMRT QA using Gafchromic EBT3 film dosimetry

Background and purposeThis study reported the justification and selection of acceptable γ criteria with respect to low (6 MV) and high (15 MV) photon beams for intensity-modulated radiation therapy quality assurance (IMRT QA) using the Gafchromic external beam therapy 3 (EBT3) film.Materials and methodsFive-field step-and-shoot IMRT was used to treat 16 brain IMRT patients using the dual-energy DHX-S linear accelerator (Varian Medical System, Palo Alto, CA, USA). Dose comparisons between computed values of the treatment planning system (TPS) and Gafchromic EBT3 film were evaluated based on γ analysis using the Film QA Pro software. The dose distribution was analysed with gamma area histograms (GAHs) generated using different γ criteria (3%/2 mm, 3%/3 mm and 5%/3 mm) for the 6 and 15 MV photon beams, to optimise the best distance-to-agreement (DTA) criteria with respect to the beam energy.ResultsFrom the comparison between the dose distributions acquired from the TPS and EBT3 film, a DTA criterion of 3%/2 mm showed less dose differences (DDs) with passing rates up to 93% for the 6 MV photon beams, while for the 15 MV a relaxed DTA criterion of 5%/3 mm was consistent with the DD acceptability criteria with a 95% passing rate.ConclusionsOur results suggested that high-energy photon beams required relaxed DTA criteria for the brain IMRT QA, while low-energy photon beams showed better results even with tight DTA criteria.