Sam Ju Cho

Evaluation of mechanical accuracy for couch-based tracking system (CBTS)

This study evaluated the mechanical accuracy of an in‐house–developed couch‐based tracking system (CBTS) according to respiration data. The overall delay time of the CBTS was calculated, and the accuracy, reproducibility, and loading effect of the CBTS were evaluated according to the sinusoidal waveform and various respiratory motion data of real patients with and without a volunteer weighing 75 kg. The root mean square (rms) error of the accuracy, the reproducibility, and the sagging measurements were calculated for the three axes (X, Y, and Z directions) of the CBTS. The overall delay time of the CBTS was 0.251 sec. The accuracy and reproducibility in the Z direction in real patient data were poor, as indicated by high rms errors. The results of the loading effect were within 1.0 mm in all directions. This novel CBTS has the potential for clinical application for tumor tracking in radiation therapy. PACS number: 87.55.ne

Development of a one-stop beam verification system using electronic portal imaging devices for routine quality assurance

In this study, a computer-based system for routine quality assurance (QA) of a linear accelerator (linac) was developed by using the dosimetric properties of an amorphous silicon electronic portal imaging device (EPID). An acrylic template phantom was designed such that it could be placed on the EPID and be aligned with the light field of the collimator. After irradiation, portal images obtained from the EPID were transferred in DICOM format to a computer and analyzed using a program we developed. The symmetry, flatness, field size, and congruence of the light and radiation fields of the photon beams from the linac were verified simultaneously. To validate the QA system, the ion chamber and film (X-Omat V2; Kodak, New York, NY) measurements were compared with the EPID measurements obtained in this study. The EPID measurements agreed with the film measurements. Parameters for beams with energies of 6 MV and 15 MV were obtained daily for 1 month using this system. It was found that our QA tool using EPID could substitute for the film test, which is a time-consuming method for routine QA assessment.

Preliminary Dose Calibration Results Using a TENOMAG Polymer Gel Dosimeter and Optical CT (VISTATM)

We present a preliminary result of dose calibration for 3D dose evaluation using gel dosimetry in radiotherapy. In this work, we measured the percentage depth dose (PDD) and dose linearity using a normoxic polymer gel dosimeter (TENOMAG) and a commercial cone-beam optical CT scanner (VISTATM, Modus Medical Devices, Inc., London, ON, Canada). We confirmed that the PDD measured for 1 and 2 Gy had a build up region at 0.4 cm depth. However, the PDD measured for 3 and 4 Gy had not a build up region. In all cases, the PDD has not greatly decreased with depth above 4 cm depth. Moreover we confirmed that the optical density proportionally increased with dose at 1, 1.5 and 2 cm depth, while the response has not greatly increased with dose for other depths. In this study, we confirmed that we will be able to perform the dose calibration using optical density obtained from a TENOMAG gel data scanned with an optical CT scanner.

Development of PDRESS (Patient Specific Dose Real Evaluation Systems) using a TENOMAG Gel and Optical CT (VISTA TM) in Clinical IMRT Prostate Case

The aims of this study, we present the preliminary results of 3 dimensional dose evaluation software (PDRESS, patient specific dose real evaluation systems). In this work, we compared planned 3D dose distribution with measured 3D dose distribution using a novel normoxic polymer gel dosimeter (TENOMAG) and a commercial cone-beam optical CT scanner (VISTATM, Modus Medical Devices, Inc., London, ON, Canada) to verify the 3D dose distribution in intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) prostate case. And we developed PDRESS using the Xelis Flatform which is developed by INFINITT Corporation is used to display the 3D dose distribution by loading the DICOM RT Data which is exported from RTP and optical-CT reconstructed VFF file. Data analysis is achieved by comparing the RTP data with the VFF data using profile, gamma map, and DTA. The profiles showed good agreement between RTP data, gel dosimeter, and gamma distribution and the precision of the dose distribution is within ± 5%. The results from this study show that there are no significantly discrepancies between the calculated dose distribution from treatment plan and the measured dose distribution from a TENOMAG gel scanned with an optical CT scanner. The 3D dose evaluation software (PDRESS) which is developed in this study evaluates the accuracy of the three dimensional dose distributions.

Comparison of linac-based fractionated stereotactic radiotherapy and tomotherapy treatment plans for intra-cranial tumors

This study compares and analyzes stereotactic radiotherapy using tomotherapy and linac-based fractionated stereotactic radiotherapy in the treatment of intra-cranial tumors, according to some cases. In this study, linac-based fractionated stereotactic radiotherapy and tomotherapy treatment were administered to five patients diagnosed with intra-cranial cancer in which the dose of 18–20 Gy was applied on 3–5 separate occasions. The tumor dosing was decided by evaluating the inhomogeneous index (II) and conformity index (CI). Also, the radiation-sensitive tissue was evaluated using low dose factors V1, V2, V3, V4, V5, and V10, as well as the non-irradiation ratio volume (NIV). The values of the II for each prescription dose in the linac-based non-coplanar radiotherapy plan and tomotherapy treatment plan were (0.125±0.113) and (0.090±0.180), respectively, and the values of the CI were (0.899±0.149) and (0.917±0.114), respectively. The low dose areas, V1, V2, V3, V4, V5, and V10, in radiation-sensitive tissues in the linac-based non-coplanar radiotherapy plan fell into the ranges 0.3%−95.6%, 0.1%−87.6%, 0.1%−78.8%, 38.8%-69.9%, 26.6%-65.2%, and 4.2%−39.7%, respectively, and the tomotherapy treatment plan had ranges of 13.6%−100%, 3.5%−100%, 0.4%−94.9%, 0.2%−82.2%, 0.1%−78.5%, and 0.3%−46.3%, respectively. Regarding the NIV for each organ, it is possible to obtain similar values except for the irradiation area of the brain stem. The percentages of NIV 10%, NIV20%, and NIV30%for the brain stem in each patient were 15%−99.8%, 33.4%−100%, and 39.8%−100%, respectively, in the fractionated stereotactic treatment plan and 44.2%-96.5%, 77.7%-99.8%, and 87.8%−100%, respectively, in the tomotherapy treatment plan. In order to achieve higher-quality treatment of intra-cranial tumors, treatment plans should be tailored according to the isodose target volume, inhomogeneous index, conformity index, position of the tumor upon fractionated stereotactic radiosurgery, and radiation dosage for radiation-sensitive tissues.

A study on the characteristic of normoxic polymer gel dosimeter according to its composition

In this study, to find the optimal composition of the gel as therapeutic radiation, the amounts of methacrylic acid and gelatin were varied. The polymer gel with various compositions were evaluated for its sensitivity, reproducibility, and accuracy. As the concentration of the gelatine is high, the threshold R2 value increases and the dose response was decreases. As the concentration of the methacrylic acid is high, both the threshold R2 value and the dose response were decrease. As both concentrations of the gelatine and the methacrylic acid is high, the sensitivity to the dose was increases within some range. It was found that the polymer gel composed in this study can be optimized for measuring the therapeutic radiation.