Publications by authors named "F W O'Grady"

Background: Neurosurgical cranial titanium mesh and screws are commonly encountered in postoperative radiation therapy. However, only a limited number of reports are available in the context of proton therapy, resulting in a lack of consensus among the proton centers regarding the protocol for handling the hardware.

Purpose: This study is to examine the impact of the hardware in proton plans.

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Background: Pencil beam scanning (PBS) proton therapy allows for far superior dose conformality compared with passive scattering techniques. However, one drawback of PBS is that the beam delivery time can be long, particularly when treating superficial disease. Minimizing beam delivery time is important for patient comfort and precision of treatment delivery.

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Objectives: Prompt gamma (PG) imaging has previously been demonstrated for use in proton range verification of a brain treatment with a homogeneous target region. In this study, the feasibility of PG imaging to detect anatomic change within a heterogeneous region is presented.

Methods: A prompt gamma camera recorded several fractions of a patient treatment to the base of skull.

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Purpose: Superficial dose is an important parameter in breast cancer radiation therapy. When treated with conventional linacs, bolus is commonly applied to improve target coverage near the surface while also managing the risk of severe skin reactions and negative cosmesis. With the introduction of modern linacs with 6X flattening filter free (FFF) photon beams, the effect on superficial dose and the need for bolus must be evaluated.

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Purpose: Three-dimensional (3D) conformal radiation therapy is the standard technique used for adjuvant breast radiation. We report the clinical use of a novel 6-MV flattening-filter-free O-ring linear accelerator (6X-FFF ORL) for breast cancer that may improve upon 3D conformal radiation therapy with its higher dose rate and faster rotation and leaf speed than traditional C-arm gantries.

Methods And Materials: We retrospectively identified consecutive women with breast cancer who underwent surgery followed by radiation therapy to the breast or chest wall on Halcyon (Varian Medical Systems, Palo Alto, CA), a novel 6X-FFF ORL.

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