Different collimators in convergent beam irradiation of irregularly shaped intracranial target volumes

We compare different collimator forms (circular, elliptic and multi-leaf) in 3-D multiple arc rotation therapy for irregularly shaped intracranial tumors. When homogeneous irradiation of the tumor is ensured, the efficiency of treatment is expressed by the sparing of normal tissue outside the target volume to high dose irradiation. By utilizing integral dose-volume histograms we demonstrate that the multi-leaf collimator has considerable advantages.