Impact of surface curvature on dose delivery in intraoperative high-dose-rate brachytherapy.

In intraoperative high-dose-rate (IOHDR) brachytherapy, a 2-dimensional (2D) geometry is typically used for treatment planning. The assumption of planar geometry may cause serious errors in dose delivery for target surfaces that are, in reality, curved. A study to evaluate the magnitude of these errors in clinical practice was undertaken.

Quantifying IOHDR brachytherapy underdosage resulting from an incomplete scatter environment.

Purpose: Most brachytherapy planning systems are based on a dose calculation algorithm that assumes an infinite scatter environment surrounding the target volume and applicator. Dosimetric errors from this assumption are negligible. However, in intraoperative high-dose-rate brachytherapy (IOHDR) where treatment catheters are typically laid either directly on a tumor bed or within applicators that may have little or no scatter material above them, the lack of scatter from one side of the applicator can result in underdosage during treatment.