Computer graphics tools for radiation treatment planning

The objective of radiation therapy treatment is to eradicate a cancerous tumor while keeping the damage to nearby healthy organs to a minimum. A variety of tools employing computer graphics exist to aid in the planning and verification of treatments. Three-dimensional (3D) image information available from sources such as computerized tomography (CT) scanners is used to define the sizes, shapes, and spatial locations of the tumor and normal structures in the form of transverse contours. These object definitions are displayed in 3D perspective to enable the determination of the best possible directions from which to aim radiation beams at the tumor. The beams may be shaped to match the outline of the tumor, and their intensities may be modified using compensating devices. The results of calculations done to predict the distribution of radiation dose throughout the body due to a given set-up of beams can be displayed to the user in many ways. Dose may be shown in the form of isodose contours overlaid on transverse CT images, or on reconstructed image planes of arbitrary orientation in space. There are also a number of methods of 3D display; dose can be shown on the surface of objects, or in the form of isodose surfaces relative to anatomical structures. Computer-generated beam film images may be used to verify patient set-up and tumor coverage.