Dose distribution estimation toward CT-less adaptive carbon ion radiotherapy for liver tumors using the divided-volume matching technique.

. Dose distribution estimation during the treatment course is essential for carbon ion radiotherapy because beam ranges are highly sensitive to density changes along beam paths, triggering the adaptive re-planning at an appropriate time. This study aims to investigate the feasibility of evaluating daily dose distributions using the divided-volume matching (DVM) technique without additional daily computed tomography (CT) scans for adaptive carbon ion radiotherapy for liver tumors.

Technical Note: A simple and fast daily quality assurance solution for modulated scanning proton and carbon ion beams.

Purpose: A typical ion beam treatment facility has multiple treatment rooms and may treat with more than one ion species, thus requiring a significant quality assurance (QA) effort. The goal of this work was to perform daily QA using a single irradiation per ion species to obtain the beam dosimetry parameters of dose per monitor unit (D/MU), range, and spot position. The X-ray alignment system should also be checked and the entire procedure performed by therapists.