BACKGROUND The radiation field on most megavoltage radiation therapy units are shown by a light field projected through the collimator by a light source mounted inside the collimator. The light field is traditionally used for patient alignment. Hence it is imperative that the light field is congruent with the radiation field. METHOD A simple quality assurance tool has been designed for rapid ...

Introduction Total body irradiations (TBI) for conditioning patients with leukemia prior to bone marrow transplantation (BMT) require time consuming verification of shielding block positions as well as dosimetric control. Short treatment times contribute to reproducibility and patient comfort and increase the accelerator capacity. To reduce setup time conventional port films were replaced by a ...

BACKGROUND The purpose of this study is to implement an electronic method to perform and analyze intensity-modulated radiation therapy quality assurance (IMRT QA) using an aSi megavoltage electronic portal imaging device in a network comprised of independent treatment planning, record and verify (R&V), and delivery systems. METHODS A verification plan was generated in the treatment planning s...

Introduction: Radiation-induced cardiovascular damage is a potential side effect of radiation therapy in patients with left-sided breast cancer. This prospective study compares the severity and reversibility of perfusion and functional abnormalities before, and six months after, 3D-Conformal radiation therapy treatment in left-side breast cancer patients with conventional and h...

A recent control system update for Elekta linear accelerators includes the ability to deliver volumetric-modulated arc therapy (VMAT) with continuously variable dose rate (CVDR), rather than a number of fixed binned dose rates (BDR). The capacity to select from a larger range of dose rates allows the linac to maintain higher gantry speeds, resulting in faster, smoother deliveries. The purpose o...

Introduction: Electronic portal imaging devices (EPIDs) could potentially be useful for intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) and VMAT QA. The data density, high resolution, large active area, and efficiency of the MV EPID make it an attractive option. However, EPIDs were designed as imaging devices, not dosimeters, and as a result they do not inherently measure dose in ...

In this paper, near real time digital radiography system was implemented for the automatic verification of local errors between simulation plan and radiation therapy. Portal image could be acquired through video camera, image board and PC after therapy radiation was converted into light by a metal/fluorescent screen. Considering the divergence according to the distance between the source and th...

background: image-guided radiotherapy used multiple imaging during the radiation therapy course to improve the precision and accuracy of health care provider's treatment. objectives: this study aims to assess the safety, effectiveness and economic aspects of image-guided radiation therapy for decision-making about this technology in iran. methods: in this study, the most important medical datab...