Treatment Delivery Technology Research Articles

A model for the physical optimization of external beam radiotherapy

A model for optimizing conformal radiotherapy dose distributions was developed based on the analogy between rotational radiotherapy and single photon emission computed tomography image reconstruction. The optimization model predicts that a large number of intensity modulated beam profiles are required to maximize conformation of the dose distribution to the dose prescription—a solution not practically feasible using early 1990s treatment delivery technology. A new method of treatment realization similar to spiral CT scanning called tomotherapy is described. The tomotherapy unit would incorporate a diagnostic CT scanner for acquiring tomographic images prior to and during a treatment for optimized treatment planning and treatment verification, respectively. The tomotherapy concept represents the first truly integrated approach to optimized treatment planning, delivery, and verification of external beam radiotherapy and could significantly advance the state-of-the-art in radiotherapy.