• Progress in Medical Physics
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.269-278
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• 2012

Aquaplast Thermoplastic (AT) is a tissue-equivalent oral compensator that has been developed to improve dose uniformity at the common boundary and around the treated area during radiotherapy in patients with head and neck cancer. In order to assess the usefulness of AT, the degree of improvement in dose distribution and physical properties were compared to those of oral compensators made using paraffin, alginate, and putty, which are materials conventionally used in dental imprinting. To assess the physical properties, strength evaluations (compression and drop evaluations) and natural deformation evaluations (volume change over time) were performed; a Gafchromic EBT2 film and a glass dosimeter inserted into a developed phantom for dose verification were used to measure the common boundary dose and the beam profile to assess the dose delivery. When the natural deformation of the oral compensators was assessed over a two-month period, alginate exhibited a maximum of 80% change in volume from moisture evaporation, while the remaining tissue-equivalent properties, including those of AT, showed a change in volume that was less than 3%. In a free-fall test at a height of 1.5 m (repeated 5 times as a strength evaluation), paraffin was easily damaged by the impact, but AT exhibited no damage from the fall. In compressive strength testing, AT was not destroyed even at 8 times the force needed for paraffin. In dose verification using a glass dosimeter, the results showed that in a single test, the tissue-equivalent (about 80 Hounsfield Units [HU]) AT delivered about 4.9% lower surface dose in terms of delivery of an output coefficient (monitor unit), which was 4% lower than putty and exhibited a value of about 1,000 HU or higher during a dose delivery of the same formulation. In addition, when the incident direction of the beam was used as a reference, the uniformity of the dose, as assessed from the beam profile at the boundary after passing through the oral compensators, was 11.41, 3.98, and 4.30 for air, AT, and putty, respectively. The AT oral compensator had a higher strength and lower probability of material transformation than the oral compensators conventionally used as a tissue-equivalent material, and a uniform dose distribution was successfully formed at the boundary and surrounding area including the mouth. It was also possible to deliver a uniformly formulated dose and reduce the skin dose delivery.

• Radiation Oncology Journal
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.111-114
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• 1990

External stereotaxic irradiation of intracranial lesions has recently gained its interest in the fields of not only radiation oncolgy but also neurosurgery. Its main goal is to deliver large doses to a relatively small target volume. Authors present methods of the stereotaxic radiosurgical irradiation using 6 MV linear accelerator (Nelac-6) and isodose distribution by therapeutic computer (Therac 2000). We attempt to demonstrate the dose distribution on verification films.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.54 no.6
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• pp.2213-2220
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• 2022

The maximum dose delivery at the end of the beam range provides the main advantage of using proton therapy. The range of the proton beam, however, is subject to uncertainties, which limit the clinical benefits of proton therapy and, therefore, accurate in vivo verification of the beam range is desirable. For the beam range verification in spot scanning proton therapy, a prompt gamma detection system, called as gamma electron vertex imaging (GEVI) system, is under development and, in the present study, the performance of the GEVI system in spot scanning proton therapy was predicted with Geant4 Monte Carlo simulations in terms of shift detection sensitivity, accuracy and precision. The simulation results indicated that the GEVI system can detect the interfractional range shifts down to 1 mm shift for the cases considered in the present study. The results also showed that both the evaluated accuracy and precision were less than 1-2 mm, except for the scenarios where we consider all spots in the energy layer for a local shifting. It was very encouraging results that the accuracy and precision satisfied the smallest distal safety margin of the investigated beam energy (i.e., 4.88 mm for 134.9 MeV).

• The Journal of Korean Society for Radiation Therapy
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.217-224
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• 2014

Purpose : Conventional, IMRT, at CSI treatment with VMAT, this study compare the treatment plan with dose changes measured at Junction field according to the error of Setup. Materials and Methods : This study established Conventional, the IMRT, VMAT treatment planning for CSI therapy using the Eclipse 10.0 (Eclipse10.0, Varian, USA) and chose person in Seoul National University Hospital. Verification plan was also created to apply IMRT QA phantom for each treatment plan to the film measurements. At this time, the error of Setup was applied to the 2, 4, 6mm respectively with the head and foot direction. ("+" direction of the head, "-" means that the foot direction.) Using IMRT QA Phantom and EBT2 film, was investigated by placing the error of Setup for each Junction. We check the consistency of the measured Film and plan dose distribution by gamma index (Gamma index, ${\gamma}$). In addition, we compared the error of Setup by the dose distribution, and analyzing the uniformity of the dose distribution within the target by calculating the Homogeneity Index (HI). Results : It was figured out that 90.49%-gamma index we obtained with film is agreement with film scan score and dose distribution of treatment plan. Also, depend on the dose distribution on distance, if we make the error of Setup 2, 4, 6mm in the head direction, it showed that 3.1, 4.5, 8.1 at $^*Diff$(%) of Conventional, 1.1, 3.5, 6.3 at IMRT, and 1.6, 2.5, 5.7 at VMAT. In the same way, if we make the error of Setup 2, 4, 6mm in the foot direction, it showed that -1.6, -2.8, -4.4 at $^*Diff$(%) of Conventional, -0.9, -1.6, -2.9 at IMRT, and -0.5, -2.2, -2.5 at VMAT. Homogeneity Index(HI)s are 1.216 at Conventional, 1.095 at IMRT and 1.069 at VMAT. Discussion and Conclusion : The dose-change depend on the error of Setup at the CSI RT(radiation therapy) using IMRT and VMAT which have advantages, Dose homogeneity and the gradual dose gradients on the Junction part is lower than that of Conventional CSI RT. This a little change of dose means that there is less danger on patients despite of the error of Setup generated at the CSI RT.

• Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
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• v.39 no.2
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• pp.81-88
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• 2014

Recently, a new imaging method, gamma vertex imaging (GVI), was proposed for the verification of in-vivo proton dose distribution. In GVI, the vertices of prompt gammas generated by proton induced nuclear interaction were determined by tracking the Compton-recoiled electrons. The GVI system is composed of a beryllium electron converter for converting gamma to electron, two double-sided silicon strip detectors (DSSDs) for the electron tracking, and a scintillation detector for the energy determination of the electron. In the present study, the modules of a charge sensitive preamplifier (CSP) and a shaping amplifier for the analog signal processing of DSSD were developed and the performances were evaluated by comparing the energy resolutions with those of the commercial products. Based on the results, it was confirmed that the energy resolution of the developed CSP module was a little lower than that of the CR-113 (Cremat, Inc., MA), and the resolution of the shaping amplifier was similar to that of the CR-200 (Cremat, Inc., MA). The value of $V_{rms}$ representing the magnitude of noise of the developed system was estimated as 6.48 keV and it was confirmed that the trajectory of the electron can be measured by the developed system considering the minimum energy deposition ( > ~51 keV) of Compton-recoiled electron in 145-${\mu}m$-thick DSSD.

• The Journal of Korean Society for Radiation Therapy
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• v.33
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• pp.117-125
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• 2021

Purpose: To purpose of this study is to find the correlation of the Set-up error according to the couch rotation and suggest additional margin setting for the GTV. Target and Method: Each scenario treatment plan was created by making the frequency of non-coplanar beams different among all beams. The set-up error value was measured by using the Exact System and the dose accuracy was evaluated by creating a re-treatment plan. Results: When the couch was rotated by 30°, 45°, 60°, and 90°, the mean of the X-axis values was measured to be 0.29 mm, 0.26 mm, 0.51 mm, and 0.08 mm, respectively. The mean of the Y-axis values was measured to be 0.75 mm, 0.5mm, 0.35 mm, and 0.29 mm, respectively. The mean of the Z-axis values was measured to be 0.5 mm, 0.28 mm, 0.22 mm, and 0.1 mm, respectively. There were dose reductions of 0.1%, 3.1%, 1.9% in D99 for 1-NC VMAT, 2-NC VMAT, and 3-NC VMAT, respectively. Conclusion: When treating with 50% or more of non-coplanar beams among total beams, image verification is required. And it is considered to make the treatment plan by adding a 1.5 mm margin to the GTV.

• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• v.43 no.1
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• pp.26-30
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• 2008

Objective : The authors developed a stereotactic device for irradiation of small animals with Leksell Gamma Knife Model C. Development and verification procedures were described in this article. Methods : The device was designed to satisfy three requirements. The mechanical accuracy in positioning was to be managed within 0.5 mm. The strength of the device and structure were to be compromised to provide enough strength to hold a small animal during irradiation and to interfere the gamma ray beam as little as possible. The device was to be used in combination with the Leksell G-$frame^{(R)}$ and $KOPF^{(R)}$ rat adaptor. The irradiation point was determined by separate imaging sequences such as plain X-ray images. Results : The absolute dose rate with the device in a Leksell Gamma Knife was 3.7% less than the value calculated from Leksell Gamma $Plan^{(R)}$. The dose distributions measured with $GAFCHROMIC^{(R)}$ MD-55 film corresponded to those of Leksell Gamma $Plan^{(R)}$ within acceptable range. The device was used in a series of rat experiments with a 4 mm helmet of Leksell Gamma Knife. Conclusion : A stereotactic device for irradiation of small animals with Leksell Gamma Knife Model C has been developed so that it fulfilled above requirements. Absorbed dose and dose distribution at the center of a Gamma Knife helmet are in acceptable ranges. The device provides enough accuracy for stereotactic irradiation with acceptable practicality.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.51 no.5
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• pp.1406-1416
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• 2019

In this research, a multi-slit prompt-gamma camera was developed to locate the distal dose falloff of the proton beam spots in spot scanning proton therapy. To see the performance of the developed camera, therapeutic proton beams were delivered to a solid plate phantom and then the prompt gammas from the phantom were measured using the camera. Our results show that the camera locates the 90% distal dose falloff (= d90%), within about 2-3 mm of error for the spots which are composed $3.8{\times}10^8$ protons or more. The measured location of d90% is not very sensitive to the irradiation depth of the proton beam (i.e., the depth of proton beam from the phantom surface toward which the camera is located). Considering the number of protons per spot for the most distal spots in typical treatment cases (i.e., 2 Gy dose divided in 2 fields), the camera can locate d90% only for a fraction of the spots depending on the treatment cases. However, the information of those spots is still valuable in that, in the multi-slit prompt-gamma camera, the distal dose falloff of the spots is located solely based on prompt gamma measurement, i.e., not referring to Monte Carlo simulation.

• The Journal of Korean Society for Radiation Therapy
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• v.15 no.1
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• pp.41-52
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• 2003

I. Purpose The dose distribution in normal tissues and target lesions is very important in the treatment planning. To make the uniform dose distribution in target lesions, many methods has been used. Especially in the head and neck, the dose inhomogeneity at the skin surface should be corrected. Conventional methods have a limitation in delivering the enough doses to the planning target volume (PTV) with minimized dose to the parotid gland and spinal cord. In this study, we investigated the feasibility and the practical QA methods of the forward IMRT. II. Material and Methods The treatment plan of the forward IMRT with the partial block technique using the dynamic multi-leaf collimator (dMLC) for the patients with the nasopharyngeal cancer was verified using the dose volume histogram (DVH). The films and pinpoint chamber were used for the accurate dose verification. III. Results As a result of verifying the DVH for the 2-D treatment plan with the forward IMRT, the dose to the both parotid gland and spinal cord were reduced. So the forward IMRT could save the normal tissues and optimize the treatment. Forward IMRT can use the 3-D treatment planning system and easily assure the quality, so it is easily accessible comparing with inverse IMRT IV. Conclusion The forward IMRT could make the uniform dose in the PTV while maintaining under the tolerance dose in the normal tissues comparing with the 2-D treatment.

• Radiation Oncology Journal
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• v.11 no.2
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• pp.421-430
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• 1993

The calculation of dose distribution in multiple arc stereotactic radiotherapy is a three-dimensional problem and, therefore, the three-dimensional dose calculation algorithm is important and the algorithm's accuracy and reliability should be confirmed experimentally. The aim of this study is to verify the dose distribution of stereotactic radiosurgery experimentally and to investigate the effect of the beam quality, the number of arcs of radiation, and the tertiary collimation on the resulting dose distribution. Film dosimetry with phantom measurements was done to get the three-dimensional orthogonal isodose distribution. All experiments were carried out with a 6 MV X-ray, except for the study of the effects of beam energy on dose distribution, which was done for X-ray energies of 6 and 15 MV. The irradiation technique was from 4 to 11 arcs at intervals of from 15 to 45 degrees between each arc with various field sizes with additional circular collimator. The dose distributions of square field with linear accelerator collimator compared with the dose distributions obtained using circular field with tertiary collimator. The parameters used for comparing the results were the shape of the isodose curve, dose fall-offs fom $90\%$ to $50\%$ and from $90\%\;to\;20\%$ isodose line for the steepest and shallowest profile, and $A=\frac{90\%\;isodose\;area}{50\%\;isodose\;area-90\%\;isodose\;area}$(modified from Chierego). This ratio may be considered as being proportional to the sparing of normal tissue around the target volume. The effect of beam energy in 6 and 15 MV X-ray indicated that the shapes of isodose curves were the same. The value of ratio A and the steepest and shallowest dose fall-offs for 6 MV X-ray was minimally better than that for 15 MV X-ray. These data illustrated that an increase in the dimensions of the field from 10 to 28 mm in diameter did not significantly change the isodose distribution. There was no significant difference in dose gradient and the shape of isodose curve regardless of the number of arcs for field sizes of 10, 21, and 32 mm in diameter. The shape of isodose curves was more circular in circular field and square in square field. And the dose gradient for the circular field was slightly better than that for the square field.