Method comparison of ultrasound and kilovoltage x-ray fiducial marker imaging for prostate radiotherapy targeting

Several measurement techniques have been developed to address the capability for target volume reduction via target localization in image-guided radiotherapy; among these have been ultrasound (US) and fiducial marker (FM) software-assisted localization. In order to assess interchangeability between methods, US and FM localization were compared using established techniques for determination of agreement between measurement methods when a 'gold-standard' comparator does not exist, after performing both techniques daily on a sequential series of patients. At least 3 days prior to CT simulation, four gold seeds were placed within the prostate. FM software-assisted localization utilized the ExacTrac X-Ray 6D (BrainLab AG, Germany) kVp x-ray image acquisition system to determine prostate position; US prostate targeting was performed on each patient using the SonArray (Varian, Palo Alto, CA). Patients were aligned daily using laser alignment of skin marks. Directional shifts were then calculated by each respective system in the X, Y and Z dimensions before each daily treatment fraction, previous to any treatment or couch adjustment, as well as a composite vector of displacement. Directional shift agreement in each axis was compared using Altman-Bland limits of agreement, Lin's concordance coefficient with Partik's grading schema, and Deming orthogonal bias-weighted correlation methodology. 1,019 software-assisted shifts were suggested by US and FM in 39 patients. The 95% limits of agreement in X, Y and Z axes were +/-9.4 mm, +/-11.3 mm and +/-13.4, respectively. Three-dimensionally, measurements agreed within 13.4 mm in 95% of all paired measures. In all axes, concordance was graded as 'poor' or 'unacceptable'. Deming regression detected proportional bias in both directional axes and three-dimensional vectors. Our data suggest substantial differences between US and FM image-guided measures and subsequent suggested directional shifts. Analysis reveals that the vast majority of all individual US and FM directional measures may be expected to agree with each other within a range of 1-1.5 cm. Since neither system represents a gold standard, clinical judgment must dictate whether such a difference is of import. As IMRT protocols seek dose escalation and PTV reduction predicated on US- and FM-guided imaging, future studies are needed to address these potential clinically relevant issues regarding the interchangeability and accuracy of novel positional verification techniques. Comparison series with multiple image-guidance systems are needed to refine comparisons between targeting methods. However, we do not advocate interchangeability of US and FM localization methods.     

Comparison of mega-voltage cone-beam computed tomography prostate localization with online ultrasound and fiducial markers methods

The online image-guided localization data from 696 ultrasound (US), 598 mega-voltage cone-beam computed tomography (MV-CBCT), and 393 seed markers (SMs) couch alignments for patients undergoing intensity modulation radiotherapy of the prostate were analyzed. Daily US, MV-CBCT and SM images were acquired for 19, 17 and 12 patients, respectively, after each patient was immobilized in a vacuum cradle and setup to skin markers as the center of mass. The couch shifts applied in the lateral (left-right/LR), vertical (anterior-posterior/AP), and longitudinal (superior-inferior/SI) directions, along with the magnitude of the three-dimensional (3D) shift vector, were analyzed and compared for all three methods. The percentage of shifts larger than 5 mm in all directions was also compared. Clinical target volume-planning target volume (CTV-to-PTV) expansion margins were estimated based on the localization data with US, CB, and SM image guidance. Results show the US data have greater variability. Systematic and random shifts were -1.2 +/- 6.8 mm (LR), -2.8 +/- 5.1 mm (SI) and -1.0 +/- 5.9 mm (AP) for US, 1.0 +/- 3.9 mm (LR), -1.3 +/- 2.5 mm (SI) and -0.3 +/- 3.9 mm (AP) for CB, and -1.0 +/- 3.4 mm (LR), 0.0 +/- 3.4 mm (SI) and 0.5 +/- 4.1 mm (AP) for SM. The mean 3D shift distance was larger using US (8.8 +/- 6.2 mm) compared to CB and SM (5.3 +/- 3.4 mm and 5.2 +/- 3.7 mm, respectively). The percentage of US shifts larger than 5 mm were 34%, 31%, and 38% in the LR, SI, and AP directions, respectively, compared to 18%, 6%, and 16% for CB and 14%, 10%, and 20% for SM. MV-CBCT and SM localization data suggest a different distribution of prostate center-of-mass shifts with smaller variability, compared to US. The online MV-CBCT and SM image-guidance data show that for treatments that do not include daily prostate localization, one can use a CTV-to-PTV margin that is 4 mm smaller than the one suggested by US data, hence allowing more rectum and bladder sparing and potentially improving the therapeutic ratio.     

Optimization of megavoltage CT scan registration settings for brain cancer treatments on tomotherapy

This study aims to determine the settings that provide the optimal clinical accuracy and consistency for the registration of megavoltage CT (MVCT) with planning kilovoltage CT image sets on the Hi-ART tomotherapy system. The systematic offset between the MVCT and the planning kVCT was determined by registration of multiple MVCT scans of a head phantom aligned with the planning isocentre. Residual error vector lengths and components were used to quantify the alignment quality for the phantom shifted by 5 mm in different directions obtained by all 27 possible combinations of MVCT inter-slice spacing, registration techniques and resolution. MVCT scans with normal slices are superior to coarse slices for registration of shifts in the superior-inferior, lateral and anterior-posterior directions. Decreasing the scan length has no detrimental effect on registration accuracy as long as the scan lengths are larger than 24 mm. In the case of bone technique and fine resolution, normal and fine MVCT scan slice spacing options give similar accuracy, so normal mode is preferable due to shorter procedure and less delivered dose required for patient set-up. A superior-inferior field length of 24-30 mm, normal slice spacing, bone technique, and fine resolution is the optimum set of registration settings for MVCT scans of a Rando head phantom acquired with the Hi-ART tomotherapy system, provided the registration shifts are less than 5 mm.     

Evaluation of residual patient position variation for spinal radiosurgery using the Novalis image guided system

PURPOSE: The Novalis system has been demonstrated to achieve accurate target localization on anthropomorphic phantoms. However, other factors, such as rotational deviation, patient intrafraction motion, and image fusion uncertainty due to patient body deformation, could contribute additional position uncertainty for actual patients. This study evaluates such position uncertainty for spinal radiosurgery patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Fifty-two consecutive spinal radiosurgery patients were included in the study. Rotational deviation was evaluated from 6-deg of freedom (6D) fusion results for all patients. The combined uncertainty of patient motion and image fusion was determined from fusion results of additional kV x-ray images acquired before, during, and after treatment for 25 of the 52 patients. The uncertainty of image fusion was also evaluated by performing 6D fusion ten different times with various regions of interest in the images selected for fusion. This was performed for two patients with L3 and T2 lesions, respectively, for comparison. RESULTS: The mean rotational deviation was 0.7 +/- 1.8, 0.7 +/- 1.5, and 0.7 +/- 1.6 deg along the yaw, roll, and pitch directions, respectively. The combined uncertainty from patient motion and image fusion was 0.1 +/- 0.9, 0.2 +/- 1.2, and 0.2 +/- 1.0 mm in the anteroposterior (AP), longitudinal, and lateral directions, respectively. The uncertainty (standard deviation) due to image fusion was less than 0.28 mm in any direction for the L3 lesion and 0.8 mm in the AP direction for the T2 lesion. CONCLUSION: Overall position uncertainty for spinal radiosurgery patients has been evaluated. Rotational deviation and patient motion were the main factors contributed to position uncertainty for actual patient treatment.     

Prostate intrafraction motion evaluation using kV fluoroscopy during treatment delivery: a feasibility and accuracy study

Margin reduction for prostate radiotherapy is limited by uncertainty in prostate localization during treatment. We investigated the feasibility and accuracy of measuring prostate intrafraction motion using kV fluoroscopy performed simultaneously with radiotherapy. Three gold coils used for target localization were implanted into the patient's prostate gland before undergoing hypofractionated online image-guided step-and-shoot intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) on an Elekta Synergy linear accelerator. At each fraction, the patient was aligned using a cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT), after which the IMRT treatment delivery and fluoroscopy were performed simultaneously. In addition, a post-treatment CBCT was acquired with the patient still on the table. To measure the intrafraction motion, we developed an algorithm to register the fluoroscopy images to a reference image derived from the post-treatment CBCT, and we estimated coil motion in three-dimensional (3D) space by combining information from registrations at different gantry angles. We also detected the MV beam turning on and off using MV scatter incident in the same fluoroscopy images, and used this information to synchronize our intrafraction evaluation with the treatment delivery. In addition, we assessed the following: the method to synchronize with treatment delivery, the dose from kV imaging, the accuracy of the localization, and the error propagated into the 3D localization from motion between fluoroscopy acquisitions. With 0.16 mAs/frame and a bowtie filter implemented, the coils could be localized with the gantry at both 0 degrees and 270 degrees with the MV beam off, and at 270 degrees with the MV beam on when multiple fluoroscopy frames were averaged. The localization in two-dimensions for phantom and patient measurements was performed with submillimeter accuracy. After backprojection into 3D the patient localization error was (-0.04 +/- 0.30) mm, (0.09 +/- 0.36)mm, and (0.03 +/- 0.68)mm in the right-left (RL), anterior-posterior (AP), and superior-inferior (SI) axes, respectively. Simulations showed that while oscillating (stationary) motion cannot be effectively represented in 3D, linearly drifting (nonstationary) motion is detectable with good accuracy. These results show that measuring prostate intrafraction motion using a single kV imager during radiotherapy is feasible and can be performed with acceptable accuracy.     

Optimization of megavoltage CT scan registration settings for thoracic cases on helical tomotherapy

This study aims to investigate the settings that provide optimum registration accuracy when registering megavoltage CT (MVCT) studies acquired on tomotherapy with planning kilovoltage CT (kVCT) studies of patients with lung cancer. For each experiment, the systematic difference between the actual and planned positions of the thorax phantom was determined by setting the phantom up at the planning isocenter, generating and registering an MVCT study. The phantom was translated by 5 or 10 mm, MVCT scanned, and registration was performed again. A root-mean-square equation that calculated the residual error of the registration based on the known shift and systematic difference was used to assess the accuracy of the registration process. The phantom study results for 18 combinations of different MVCT/kVCT registration options are presented and compared to clinical registration data from 17 lung cancer patients. MVCT studies acquired with coarse (6 mm), normal (4 mm) and fine (2 mm) slice spacings could all be registered with similar residual errors. No specific combination of resolution and fusion selection technique resulted in a lower residual error. A scan length of 6 cm with any slice spacing registered with the full image fusion selection technique and fine resolution will result in a low residual error most of the time. On average, large corrections made manually by clinicians to the automatic registration values are infrequent. Small manual corrections within the residual error averages of the registration process occur, but their impact on the average patient position is small. Registrations using the full image fusion selection technique and fine resolution of 6 cm MVCT scans with coarse slices have a low residual error, and this strategy can be clinically used for lung cancer patients treated on tomotherapy. Automatic registration values are accurate on average, and a quick verification on a sagittal MVCT slice should be enough to detect registration outliers.     

Six dimensional analysis with daily stereoscopic x-ray imaging of intrafraction patient motion in head and neck treatments using five points fixation masks

The safety margins used to define the Planning Target Volume (PTV) should reflect the accuracy of the target localization during treatment that comprises both the reproducibility of the patient positioning and the positional uncertainty of the target, so both the inter- and intrafraction motion of the target. Our first aim in this study was to determine the intrafraction motion of patients immobilized with a five-point thermoplastic mask for head and neck treatments. The five-point masks have the advantage that the patient's shoulders as well as the cranial part of the patient's head is covered with the thermoplastic material that improves the overall immobilization of the head and neck region of the patient. Thirteen patients were consecutively assigned to use a five-point thermoplastic mask. The patients were positioned by tracking of infrared markers (IR) fixed to the immobilization device and stereoscopic x-ray images were used for daily on-line setup verification. Repositioning was carried out prior to treatment as needed; rotations were not corrected. Movements during treatment were monitored by real-time IR tracking. Intrafraction motion and rotation was supplementary assessed by a six-degree-of-freedom (6-D) fusion of x-ray images, taken before and after all 385 treatments, with DRR images generated from the planning CT data. The latter evaluates the movement of the patient within the thermoplastic mask independent from the mask movement, where IR tracking evaluates the movement of the mask caused by patient movement in the mask. These two movements are not necessarily equal to each other. The maximum intrafraction movement detected by IR tracking showed a shift [mean (SD; range)] of -0.1(0.7; 6.0), 0.1(0.6; 3.6), -0.2(0.8;5.5) mm in the vertical, longitudinal, and lateral direction, respectively, and rotations of 0.0(0.2; 1.6), 0.0(0.2; 1.7) and 0.2(0.2; 2.4) degrees about the vertical, longitudinal, and lateral axis, respectively. The standard deviations and ranges found with the 6-D fusion demonstrate intrafraction patient displacements of -0.5(1.2; 7.4), 0.3(0.7; 5.3), 0.0(0.7; 5.7) mm in the vertical, longitudinal, and lateral direction, respectively, and rotations of -0.1(0.6; 4.1), 0.1(0.7; 8.3) and -0.2(0.8; 8.2) degrees about the vertical, longitudinal, and lateral axis, respectively. The 6-D fusions are considerably larger (p < 0.05) than detected by IR tracking. This indicates that the external marker tracking underestimates the magnitude of the actual intrafraction motion and rotation of the patient. The intrafraction motion detected for the patients immobilized with a conventional thermoplastic mask was relatively large. The feasibility to reduce this intrafraction movement by the application of alternative five-point thermoplastic mask types was evaluated as a second aim of this study. The preliminary results showed a clear reduction in the range, being an indication for the random movements, of both the intrafraction shift and rotation for both alternative mask types. The 6-D fusion is found a useful tool for a fast evaluation of the actual patient's intrafraction shift and rotation and shows the latter is not negligible and needs to be taken into account additional to the initial setup accuracy when determining the PTV margin.     

Image registration of a moving target phantom with helical tomotherapy: effect of the CT acquisition technique and action level proposal

This study aims to quantify the effects of target motion and resultant motion artifacts in planning and megavoltage CT (MVCT) studies on the automatic registration processes of helical tomotherapy. Clinical and experimental data were used to derive an action level for patient repositioning on helical tomotherapy. Planning CT studies of a respiratory motion phantom were acquired using conventional and four-dimensional CT (4D CT) techniques. MVCT studies were acquired on helical tomotherapy in the presence and absence of target motion and were registered with different planning CT studies. The residual errors of the registration process were calculated from the registration values to quantify the ability of the process to detect 5 or 10 mm translations of the phantom in two directions. Twenty-seven registration combinations of MVCT inter-slice spacing, technique and resolution were investigated. The residual errors were used as an estimate of the localization error of the registration process, and the accuracy of couch repositioning was determined from couch position measurements during 866 treatment fractions. These two parameters were used to calculate the action level for patient repositioning on helical tomotherapy. Automatic registration of an MVCT study with 0% breathing phase, average intensity and maximum intensity 4D CT projections did not differ from that of an MVCT study with a conventional planning CT. Motion artifacts in the MVCT or planning CT studies changed the accuracy of the automatic registration process by less than 2.0%. The action level for patient repositioning using MVCT studies of 6 mm inter-slice spacing was determined to be 0.7, 1.1 and 0.6 mm in the x-, y- and z-directions, respectively. These action levels have the greatest effect on treatments for disease sites in the brain.     

2D/3D image fusion for accurate target localization and evaluation of a mask based stereotactic system in fractionated stereotactic radiotherapy of cranial lesions

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the accuracy of a two-dimensional (2D) to three-dimensional (3D) image-fusion-guided target localization system and a mask based stereotactic system for fractionated stereotactic radiotherapy (FSRT) of cranial lesions. A commercial x-ray image guidance system originally developed for extracranial radiosurgery was used for FSRT of cranial lesions. The localization accuracy was quantitatively evaluated with an anthropomorphic head phantom implanted with eight small radiopaque markers (BBs) in different locations. The accuracy and its clinical reliability were also qualitatively evaluated for a total of 127 fractions in 12 patients with both kV x-ray images and MV portal films. The image-guided system was then used as a standard to evaluate the overall uncertainty and reproducibility of the head mask based stereotactic system in these patients. The phantom study demonstrated that the maximal random error of the image-guided target localization was +/-0.6 mm in each direction in terms of the 95% confidence interval (CI). The systematic error varied with measurement methods. It was approximately 0.4 mm, mainly in the longitudinal direction, for the kV x-ray method. There was a 0.5 mm systematic difference, primarily in the lateral direction, between the kV x-ray and the MV portal methods. The patient study suggested that the accuracy of the image-guided system in patients was comparable to that in the phantom. The overall uncertainty of the mask system was +/-4 mm, and the reproducibility was +/-2.9 mm in terms of 95% CI. The study demonstrated that the image guidance system provides accurate and precise target positioning.     

Commissioning and quality assurance of an optically guided three-dimensional ultrasound target localization system for radiotherapy

Recently, there has been proliferation of image-guided positioning systems for high-precision radiation therapy, with little attention given to quality assurance procedures for such systems. To ensure accurate treatment delivery, errors in the imaging, localization, and treatment delivery processes must be systematically analyzed. This paper details acceptance tests for an optically guided three-dimensional (3D) ultrasound system used for patient localization. While all tests were performed using the same commercial system, the general philosophy and procedures are applicable to all systems utilizing image guidance. Determination of absolute localization accuracy requires a consistent stereotactic, or three-dimensional, coordinate system in the treatment planning system and the treatment vault. We established such a coordinate system using optical guidance. The accuracy of this system for localization of spherical targets imbedded in a phantom at depths ranging from 3 to 13 cm was determined to be (average +/- standard deviation) AP = 0.2 +/- 0.7 mm, Lat = 0.9 +/- 0.6 mm, Ax = 0.6 +/- 1.0 mm. In order to test the ability of the optically guided 3D ultrasound localization system to determine the magnitude of an internal organ shift with respect to the treatment isocenter, a phantom that closely mimics the typical human male pelvic anatomy was used. A CT scan of the phantom was acquired, and the regions of interest were contoured. With the phantom on the treatment couch, optical guidance was used to determine the positions of each organ to within imaging uncertainty, and to align the phantom so the plan and treatment machine coordinates coincided. To simulate a clinical misalignment of the treatment target, the phantom was then shifted by different precise offsets, and an experimenter blind to the offsets used ultrasound guidance to determine the magnitude of the shifts. On average, the magnitude of the shifts could be determined to within 1.0 mm along each axis.     

3D ultrasound for prostate localization in radiation therapy: a comparison with implanted fiducial markers

This study compares prostate localization using three-dimensional ultrasound (3D US) to a standard technique using implanted fiducial markers (FMs) for prostate image guided radiation therapy (IGRT). Two methods to determine prostate position on US were evaluated: Assisted segmentation (prospectively) and manual segmentation (retrospectively). Daily couch shifts to align the prostate into treatment position were measured using each technique. A total of 278 FM couch shifts and 255 and 218 corresponding assisted and manual segmentation US couch shifts were analyzed in each direction: Anterior-posterior, right-left, and superior-inferior. Ninety five percent "limits-of-agreement" (LOA) were used to analyze paired couch shifts and to determine if US can reliably replace FMs. We chose an error tolerance of +/- 3 mm for the LOA analysis. For FM vs assisted-segmentation US, 35.3%, 51.0%, and 48.2% of couch shifts (anterior-posterior, right-left, and superior-inferior, respectively) agreed within +/- 3 mm. Agreement improved using manual segmentation US (corresponding agreements were 45.3%, 64.1%, and 55.2%), however, results still lie markedly below the 95% we consider to indicate clinical equivalence. Based on these results, our experience indicates US cannot replace FMs for prostate IGRT, using either assisted or manual segmentation. US couch shifts showed considerably greater variability than FM measures and US image quality is shown to affect agreement. Planning target volume margins for use with the US system were found to be 15.8, 8.7, and 12.5 mm for assisted segmentation and 13.1, 7.6, and 9.8 mm for manual segmentation. Comparison of these margins to those reported in recent studies for use with FM IGRT indicate FMs offer greater sparing of the rectum and bladder than the US system.     

The effect of temporal HU variations on the uncertainty of dose recalculations performed on MVCT images

Over the course of radiation therapy, a patient's anatomy may change substantially. The relatively recent addition of frequent in-room imaging to assist with patient localization has provided a database of images that may be used to recalculate dose distributions for adaptive radiotherapy purposes. The TomoTherapy Hi-Art II unit (Accuray Inc., Sunnyvale, CA, USA) uses a helical scanning geometry and a megavoltage (MV) beam to acquire volumetric patient images. This study evaluated the uncertainty of dose calculations performed on megavoltage CT (MVCT) images as a function of temporal Hounsfield Unit (HU) variations observed in the imaging system over three years on two machines. A baseline error between dose calculations performed on kVCT and MVCT images was established using a series of phantoms. This baseline error ranged from -1.4% to 0.6%. Materials of differing densities were imaged and MVCT numbers were measured periodically. The MVCT number of solid water varied from 5 to 103 HU and consistently increased prior to target replacement. Finally, the dosimetric uncertainty of the temporal HU variation was assessed using MVCT images of typical head and neck, lung and prostate cancer patients. Worst-case MVCT recalculation errors could approach 5%, 7% and 10% for the head and neck, lung and prostate images, respectively. However, if a tolerance of ±30 HU were maintained for the MVCT number of solid water, dosimetric errors were limited to ±2.5%, ±3% and ±4%, respectively.     

Image-guided radiosurgery for spinal tumors: methods, accuracy and patient intrafraction motion

Image-guided frameless extracranial radiosurgery has become an established treatment option; however, without a frame to restrict patient movements, intrafraction field mispositioning becomes more probable. The primary aim of this study is to determine the intrafraction motion of spinal radiosurgery patients. This aim was approached in two steps. First, a phantom study demonstrated that the system can detect movements accurately within 0.1 mm and rotational changes within 0.2 degrees. Second, patient positioning and monitoring were carried out for a group of 15 patients with 20 treatment sites. For the patient pool in the study, vertebral anatomy movement was observed to vary as much as 3 mm between sequential measurements and could occur in as little as 5 min. These results suggest a need for intrafraction patient monitoring and correctional shifts, even for patients whose overall treatment times are expected to be relatively short. Small relative rotations with standard deviations of less than 1.5 degrees were observed. The small relative rotational movements observed do not, alone, justify patient monitoring using the image-guidance system during the treatments of generally small radiosurgical targets.     

The use of megavoltage CT (MVCT) images for dose recomputations

Megavoltage CT (MVCT) images of patients are acquired daily on a helical tomotherapy unit (TomoTherapy, Inc., Madison, WI). While these images are used primarily for patient alignment, they can also be used to recalculate the treatment plan for the patient anatomy of the day. The use of MVCT images for dose computations requires a reliable CT number to electron density calibration curve. In this work, we tested the stability of the MVCT numbers by determining the variation of this calibration with spatial arrangement of the phantom, time and MVCT acquisition parameters. The two calibration curves that represent the largest variations were applied to six clinical MVCT images for recalculations to test for dosimetric uncertainties. Among the six cases tested, the largest difference in any of the dosimetric endpoints was 3.1% but more typically the dosimetric endpoints varied by less than 2%. Using an average CT to electron density calibration and a thorax phantom, a series of end-to-end tests were run. Using a rigid phantom, recalculated dose volume histograms (DVHs) were compared with plan DVHs. Using a deformed phantom, recalculated point dose variations were compared with measurements. The MVCT field of view is limited and the image space outside this field of view can be filled in with information from the planning kVCT. This merging technique was tested for a rigid phantom. Finally, the influence of the MVCT slice thickness on the dose recalculation was investigated. The dosimetric differences observed in all phantom tests were within the range of dosimetric uncertainties observed due to variations in the calibration curve. The use of MVCT images allows the assessment of daily dose distributions with an accuracy that is similar to that of the initial kVCT dose calculation.     

Simulated real time image guided intrafraction tracking-delivery for hypofractionated prostate IMRT

Hypofractionated stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) has been tested for prostate cancer radiotherapy. This study aims to investigate the dosimetric effects of intrafraction prostate motion on the target and the normal structures for SBRT. For prostate cancer patients treated with an image-tracking CyberKnife system, the intrafraction prostate movements were recorded during 50-70 min treatment time. Based on the recorded intrafraction prostate movements, treatment plans were created for these cases using intensity modulated beams while scaling the average time patterns from the CyberKnife treatment to simulate hypofractionated intensity modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) delivery. The effect of delivery time on the intrafraction organ motion was investigated. For a nominal single fraction delivery of 9.5 Gy with IMRT, we found that the dosimetric effect of the intrafraction prostate movement is case dependent. For most cases, the dose volume histograms exhibited very small changes from the treatment plans that assumed no intrafractional prostate motion when the maximum intrafraction movements were within +/-5 mm. However, when sporadic prostate movements greater than 5 mm were present in any one direction, significant changes were found. For example, the V100, for the prostate could be reduced by more than 10% to less than 85% of the prostate volume coverage. If these large movements could be excluded by some active correction strategies, then the average V100% for the simulated plan could be restored to within approximately 2% of the ideal treatment plans. On average, the sporadic intrafraction motion has less dosimetric impact on the prolonged treatment delivery versus fast treatment delivery. For example, the average V100% for the clinical target volume was reduced from the original 95.1% to 92.1 +/- 3.7% for prolonged treatment, and to 91.3 +/- 5.4% when the treatment time was shortened by 50%. Due to the observed large sporadic prostate motions, we conclude that an on-line target motion monitoring and correction strategy is necessary to implement hypofractionated SBRT with intensity modulated beams for prostate cancer treatments.     

Evaluation of the precision of portal-image-guided head-and-neck localization: an intra- and interobserver study

There is increasing evidence that, for some patients, image-guided intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) for head-and-neck cancer patients may maintain target dose coverage and critical organ (e.g., parotids) dose closer to the planned doses than setup using lasers alone. We investigated inter- and intraobserver uncertainties in patient setup in head-and-neck cancer patients. Twenty-two sets of orthogonal digital portal images (from five patients) were selected from images used for daily localization of head-and-neck patients treated with IMRT. To evaluate interobserver variations, five radiation therapists compared the portal images with the plan digitally reconstructed radiographs and reported shifts for the isocenter (approximately C2) and for a supraclavicular reference point. One therapist repeated the procedure a month later to evaluate intraobserver variations. The procedure was then repeated with teams of two therapists. The frequencies for which agreement between the shift reported by the observer and the daily mean shift (average of all observers for a given image set) were less than 1.5 and 2.5 mm were calculated. Standard errors of measurement for the intra- and interobserver uncertainty (SEMintra and SEMinter) for the individual and teams were calculated. The data showed that there was very little difference between individual therapists and teams. At isocenter, 80%-90% of all reported shifts agreed with the daily average within 1.5 mm, showing consistency in the ways both individuals and teams interpret the images (SEMinter approximately 1 mm). This dropped to 65% for the supraclavicular point (SEMinter approximately 1.5 mm). Uncertainties increased for larger setup errors. In conclusion, image-guided patient positioning allows head-and-neck patients to be controlled within 3-4 mm. This is similar to the setup uncertainties found for most head-and-neck patients, but may provide some improvement for the subset of patients with larger setup uncertainties.     

A phantom study on the positioning accuracy of the Novalis Body system

A phantom study was conducted to investigate inherent positioning accuracy of an image-guided patient positioning system-the Novalis Body system for three-dimensional (3-D) conformal radiotherapy. This positioning system consists of two infrared (IR) cameras and one video camera and two kV x-ray imaging devices. The initial patient setup was guided by the IR camera system and the target localization was accomplished using the kV x-ray imaging system. In this study, the IR marker shift and phantom rotation were simulated and their effects on the positioning accuracy were examined by a Rando phantom. The effects of CT slice thickness and treatment sites on the positioning accuracy were tested. In addition, the internal target shift was simulated and its effect on the positioning accuracy was examined by a water tank. With the application of the Novalis Body system, the positioning error of the planned isocenter was significantly reduced. The experimental results with the simulated IR marker shifts indicated that the positioning errors of the planned isocenter were 0.6 +/- 0.3, 0.5 +/- 0.2, and 0.7 +/- 0.2 mm along the lateral, longitudinal, and vertical axes, respectively. The experimental results with the simulated phantom rotations indicated that the positioning errors of the planned isocenter were 0.6 +/- 0.3, 0.7 +/- 0.2, and 0.5 +/- 0.2 mm along the three axes, respectively. The experimental results with the simulated target shifts indicated that the positioning errors of the planned isocenter were 0.6 +/- 0.3, 0.7 +/- 0.2, and 0.5 +/- 0.2 mm along the three axes, respectively. On average, the positioning accuracy of 1 mm for the planned isocenter was achieved using the Novalis Body system.     

Benchmarking a novel ultrasound-CT fusion system for respiratory motion management in radiotherapy: assessment of spatio-temporal characteristics and comparison to 4DCT

Management of respiratory motion during radiation therapy requires treatment planning and simulation using imaging modalities that possess sufficient spatio-temporal accuracy and precision. An investigation into the use of a novel ultrasound (US) imaging system for assessment of respiratory motion is presented, exploiting its good soft tissue contrast and temporal precision. The system dynamically superimposes the appropriate image plane sampled from a reference CT data set with the corresponding US B-mode image. An articulating arm is used for spatial registration. While the focus of the study was to quantify the system's ability to track respiratory motion, certain unique spatial calibration procedures were devised that render the software potentially valuable to the general research community. These include direct access to all transformation matrix elements and image scaling factors, a manual latency correction function, and a three-point spatial registration procedure that allows the system to be used in any room possessing a traditional radiotherapy laser localization system. Counter-intuitively, it was discovered that a manual procedure for calibrating certain transformation matrix elements produced superior accuracy to that of an algorithmic Levenberg-Marquardt optimization method. The absolute spatial accuracy was verified by comparing the physical locations of phantom test objects measured using the spatially registered US system, and using data from a 3DCT scan of the phantom as a reference. The spatial accuracy of the display superposition was also tested in a similar manner. The system's dynamic properties were then assessed using three methods. First, the overall system response time was studied using a programmable motion phantom. This included US video update, articulating arm update, CT data set resampling, and image display. The next investigation verified the system's ability to measure the range of motion of a moving anatomical test phantom that possessed both high and low contrast test objects. Finally, the system's performance was compared to that of a four-dimensional CT (4DCT) data set. The absolute spatial and display superposition accuracy was found to be better than 2 mm and typically 1 mm. Overall dynamic system response was adequate to produce a mean relative positional error of less than 1 mm if an empiric latency correction of 3 video frames was incorporated. The dynamic CT/US display mode was able to assess phantom motion for both high and low contrast test objects to within 1 mm, and compared favorably to the 4DCT data. The 4DCT movie loop accurately assessed the target motion for both of the high and low contrast objects tested, but the minimum intensity and average intensity reconstructions did not. This investigation demonstrated that this US system possesses sufficient spatio-temporal accuracy to properly assess respiratory motion. Future work will seek to demonstrate efficacy in its clinical application to respiratory motion assessment, particularly for sites in the upper abdomen, where low tissue contrast is evident.     

Accuracy of rigid CT-FDG-PET image registration of the liver

Diagnostic and surgical strategies could benefit from accurate localization of liver malignancies via CT-FDG-PET image registration. However, registration uncertainty occurs due to protocol differences in data-acquisition, the limited spatial resolution of positron emission tomography (PET) and the low uptake of 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) in normal liver tissue. To assess this uncertainty, methods were presented to estimate registration precision and systematic bias. A semi-automatic, organ-focused method was investigated to minimize the uncertainty well beyond the typical uncertainty of 5-10 mm obtained by commonly available methods. By restricting registration to the liver region and by isolating the liver on computed tomography (CT) from surrounding structures using a thresholding technique, registration was achieved using the mutual information-based method as implemented in insight toolkit (ITK). CT and FDG-PET images of 10 patients with liver metastases were registered rigidly a number of times. Results of the organ-focused method were compared to results of three commonly available methods (a manual, a landmark-based and a 'standard' mutual information-based method) where no dedicated image processing was performed. The proposed method outperformed the other methods with a precision (mean+/-s.d.) of 2.5+/-1.3 mm and a bias of 1.9 mm with a 95% CI of [1.0, 2.8] mm. Unlike the commonly available methods, our approach allows for robust CT-FDG-PET registration of the liver, with an accuracy better than the spatial resolution of the PET scanner that was used.     

Evaluation of intrafraction patient movement for CNS and head & neck IMRT

Intrafraction patient motion is much more likely in intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) than in conventional radiotherapy primarily due to longer beam delivery times in IMRT treatment. In this study, we evaluated the uncertainty of intrafraction patient displacement in CNS and head and neck IMRT patients. Immobilization is performed in three steps: (1) the patient is immobilized with thermoplastic facemask, (2) the patient displacement is monitored using a commercial stereotactic infrared IR camera (ExacTrac, BrainLab) during treatment, and (3) repositioning is carried out as needed. The displacement data were recorded during beam-on time for the entire treatment duration for 5 patients using the camera system. We used the concept of cumulative time versus patient position uncertainty, referred to as an uncertainty time histogram (UTH), to analyze the data. UTH is a plot of the accumulated time during which a patient stays within the corresponding movement uncertainty. The University of Florida immobilization procedure showed an effective immobilization capability for CNS and head and neck IMRT patients by keeping the patient displacement less than 1.5 mm for 95% of treatment time (1.43 mm for 1, and 1.02 mm for 1, and less than 1.0 mm for 3 patients). The maximum displacement was 2.0 mm.