The synchronization of dynamic multileaf collimator (DMLC) response with respiratory motion is critical to ensure the accuracy of DMLC-based four dimensional (4D) radiation delivery. In practice, however, a finite time delay (response time) between the acquisition of tumor position and multileaf collimator response necessitates predictive models of respiratory tumor motion to synchronize radiat...

BACKGROUND Machine Performance Check (MPC) is an application to verify geometry and beam performances of TrueBeam Linacs, through automated checks based on their kV-MV imaging systems. In this study, preliminary tests with MPC were analyzed using all photon beam energies of our TrueBeam, comparing whenever possible with external independent checks. METHODS Data acquisition comprises a series ...

Nowadays, in most radiotherapy departments, the commercial treatment planning systems (TPS) used to calculate dose distributions needs to be verified; therefore, quick, easy-to-use, and low-cost dose distribution algorithms are desirable to test and verify the performance of the TPS. In this paper, we put forth an analytical method to calculate the phantom scatter contribution and depth dose on...

PURPOSE To verify the accuracy of volumetric arc therapy (VMAT) using the RapidArc™ device when switching patients from one single linear accelerator (linac) to a paired energy and mechanics "twin" linac without reoptimization of the original treatment plan. PATIENTS AND METHODS Four centers using 8 linacs were involved in this study. Seventy-four patients previously treated with the 6MV phot...

We performed an initial dosimetric evaluation of SmartArc - a novel VMAT planning module for Philips Pinnacle treatment planning system. A test suite of structure sets and dose objectives provided by the AAPM for multi-institutional comparison of IMRT dosimetry was used. A total of fifty plans were successfully delivered. The effect of control point spacing on dosimetric accuracy was investigat...

The calibration methods for in-situ gamma spectrometry systems used CIEMAT include semiempirical approaches using point sources, pure mathematical calibrations using the ISOCS software and a stripping method developed at CIEMAT. The two first procedures give information about the activity concentration in the soil, and the third method provides distributions of dosimetric quantities as a functi...

background: in radiation therapy, peripheral dose or the dose outside the radiotherapy field, is important when anatomical structures with very low dose tolerances are involved. one of these critical organs in pelvic irradiation is testis. the amount of radiation delivered to the testes in radiotherapy must be kept as small as possible, consistent with the limit dose of this organ. the threshol...

The dosimetric impact from devices external to the patient is a complex combination of increased skin dose, reduced tumor dose, and altered dose distribution. Although small monitor unit or dose corrections are routinely made for blocking trays, ion chamber correction factors, e.g., accounting for temperature and pressure, or tissue inhomogeneities, the dose perturbation of the treatment couch ...

PURPOSE To use a graphic processing unit (GPU) calculation engine to implement a fast 3D pre-treatment dosimetric verification procedure based on an electronic portal imaging device (EPID). METHODS The GPU algorithm includes the deconvolution and convolution method for the fluence-map calculations, the collapsed-cone convolution/superposition (CCCS) algorithm for the 3D dose calculations and ...

Recently published Medical Physics Practice Guideline 5.a. (MPPG 5.a.) by American Association of Physicists in Medicine (AAPM) sets the minimum requirements for treatment planning system (TPS) dose algorithm commissioning and quality assurance (QA). The guideline recommends some validation tests and tolerances based primarily on published AAPM task group reports and the criteria used by IROC H...