SU-E-T-551: A Customized Plan Evaluation System for On-Line Adaptive Radiotherapy

Area of Science:

• Medical Physics
• Radiation Oncology
• Radiotherapy Technology

Background:

• Adaptive radiotherapy requires efficient daily treatment plan evaluation to determine the necessity of replanning.
• Automated systems are needed to integrate physician preferences and protocol constraints into treatment plan assessment.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a fully automatic system for evaluating radiation therapy treatment plans.
• To incorporate physician preferences and specific protocol requirements into the evaluation process using objective functions.

Main Methods:

• The system was developed using IDL 6.1, evaluating dosimetric parameters (e.g., dose coverage, conformity index, DVH) based on customized guidelines.
• Cost functions were created to integrate protocol constraints and physician requirements for targets and organs at risk (OARs).
• The system was applied to intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) plans for head and neck cancer patients, using data exported from the Pinnacle Treatment Planning System.

Main Results:

• The evaluation system completes plan assessments in 2-8 seconds, enabling near real-time feedback.
• It can display and compare dose distributions across different treatment plans.
• The system offers flexibility in customizing cost functions and includes user-friendly options with graphical displays.

Conclusions:

• The developed system automates treatment plan evaluation, quantifying protocols and physician preferences in near real-time.
• It serves as a crucial platform for adaptive radiation therapy and is beneficial for initial treatment planning.
• The system's flexibility and speed make it a valuable tool in radiation oncology.