The use of customized spreadsheets in radiation therapy

Area of Science:

• Medical Physics
• Radiation Oncology
• Computational Biology

Background:

• Radiation therapy requires precise dose calculations for effective treatment.
• Commercial treatment planning systems are widely used but benefit from independent verification.
• Spreadsheet software offers accessible data visualization and calculation capabilities.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and implement spreadsheet-based tools for radiation therapy dose calculations.
• To provide an independent verification method for clinical radiation oncology.
• To leverage existing software for enhanced accuracy and efficiency in dose calculations.

Main Methods:

• Developed custom spreadsheet programs for specific radiation therapy applications.
• Utilized graphical and display features of spreadsheet software for visual results.
• Implemented spreadsheets for verification of monitor units (MU), calibration, radiosurgery, and total body irradiation (TBI) calculations.

Main Results:

• Spreadsheets provide concise visual results for radiation therapy dose calculations.
• Verified monitor units (MU) for external beam therapy against commercial treatment planning systems.
• Developed calibration protocols for cobalt, photon, and electron beams using the TG-21 protocol.
• Calculated MU per arc for radiosurgery and MU for TBI based on patient-specific parameters.

Conclusions:

• Spreadsheet programs serve as valuable tools for independent checks in radiation therapy dose calculations.
• The developed spreadsheets enhance accuracy and efficiency in clinical radiation oncology.
• This approach demonstrates the utility of commercially available software in specialized medical physics applications.