The treatment couch and some of the positioning devices of patients receiving radiotherapy treatment are made of a material (carbon) which has low attenuation properties for the photon energies used in the radiotherapy. Previous investigations showed the suitability of carbon fiber tabletops in radiotherapy and their very low attenuation properties for a range of X-ray energies and field sizes ...

For specific radiation therapy (RT) treatments, it is advantageous to use the isocenter-to-couch distance (ICD) for initial patient setup.(1) Since sagging of the treatment couch is not properly taken into account by the electronic readout of the treatment machine, this readout cannot be used for initial patient positioning using the isocenter-to-couch distance (ICD). Therefore, initial patient...

Noncoplanar radiation fields from a linear accelerator can be used to deliver radiation dose distributions that are superior to those delivered using coplanar radiation fields. Noncoplanar radiation field arrangements are especially valuable when delivering stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT). Noncoplanar radiation fields, however, are geometrically more challenging to deliver than copla...

This work investigates the use of the tolerance limits on the treatment couch position to detect mistakes in patient positioning and warn users of possible treatment errors. Computer controlled radiotherapy systems use the position of the treatment couch as a surrogate for patient position and a tolerance limit is applied against a planned position. When the couch is out of tolerance a warning ...

We have developed a method to improve the setup accuracy of a Varian Clinac 6/100 couch for delivering conformal arc therapy using a tertiary micro multileaf collimator (MLC) system. Several immobilization devices have been developed to improve the mechanical stability and isocenter alignment of the couch: turn-knob harnesses, double-track alignment plates, and a drop-in rod that attaches the c...

The use of non-coplanar radiation fields can potentially lead to collisions between the gantry and the couch or patient. The collisions are often not realized until the plan is finished and the fields are checked on the machine, or even later when the patient is already on the table. This paper presents an easy method of gauging if a collision is likely between the gantry and couch or patient d...

In proton therapy, robotic couch was used for patient positioning to achieve high precision in cancer treatment. However, no studies have focused on the real-time motion management system (MMS) couch. This study develop MMS and verify its feasibility. A set up with a couch, an NDI Vega optical tracking system, Special Measurement Tool (SMT) developed software. Leica laser tracker adopted accura...

Intensity modulated tangential photon beams for breast cancer treatment can improve the dose uniformity significantly throughout the whole breast and reduce the dose to the lung and the heart comparing with the conventional technique. Before the first treatment, patient setup may require a change on the collimator angle and/or the couch angle based on the chest wall coverage according to the po...

In intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) and volumetric-modulated arc therapy (VMAT), the use of posterior oblique beams has become common. Beam attenuation by the treatment couch is not negligible when the couch is in the beam portal. In this study, we established the relationship of relative dose vs. beam angle for two Varian 21EX linacs, one equipped with the Exact couch (standard cou...

The accuracy of the position measurements obtained by the radiation positioning system (RADPOS) was evaluated under static and dynamic conditions. In the static verifications, the RADPOS was fixed to the treatment couch in a photon treatment room and a proton treatment room, and was translocated with the treatment couch in x, y and z directions. Because the presence of magnetic and/or electrica...