Script-based automatic radiotherapy planning for cervical cancer.

Background: This study aimed to develop fully automated script-based radiotherapy treatment plans for cervical cancer patients, and evaluate them against clinically accepted plans, as validation before clinical implementation.

Material And Methods: In this retrospective planning study, treatment plans for 25 locally advanced cervical cancer (LACC) patients with up to three dose levels were included. Fully automated plans were created using an in-house developed Python script in RayStation, and compared to clinically accepted manually made plans.

Locoregional breast radiotherapy including IMN: optimizing the dose distribution using an automated non-coplanar VMAT-technique.

Background: Volumetric Modulated Arc Therapy (VMAT) offers better conformity, homogeneity and sparing of the heart and ipsilateral lung for locoregional radiotherapy in left-sided breast cancer compared to three-dimensional conformal radiotherapy (3D-CRT). However, conventional coplanar VMAT (cVMAT) can result in higher doses to the normal tissue on the contralateral side. This study investigates a non-coplanar VMAT-technique (ncVMAT) to mitigate this issue.

Training, validation, and clinical implementation of a deep-learning segmentation model for radiotherapy of loco-regional breast cancer.

Aim: To train and validate a comprehensive deep-learning (DL) segmentation model for loco-regional breast cancer with the aim of clinical implementation.

Methods: DL segmentation models for 7 clinical target volumes (CTVs) and 11 organs at risk (OARs) were trained on 170 left-sided breast cancer cases from two radiotherapy centres in Norway. Another 30 patient cases were used for validation, which included the evaluation of Dice similarity coefficient and Hausdorff distance, qualitative scoring according to clinical usability, and relevant dosimetric parameters.

A cross-sectional study examining the prevalence of cachexia and areas of unmet need in patients with cancer.

Purpose: The semantics of defining cancer cachexia over the last decade has resulted in uncertainty as to the prevalence. This has further hindered the recognition and subsequent treatment of this condition. Following the consensus definition for cancer cachexia in 2011, there is now a need to establish estimates of prevalence.

Is it possible to detect an improvement in cancer pain management? A comparison of two Norwegian cross-sectional studies conducted 5 years apart.

Purpose: Cancer pain (CP) management is challenging. In recent years, efforts were undertaken to achieve better CP management, e.g.

Explaining variation in cancer survival between 11 jurisdictions in the International Cancer Benchmarking Partnership: a primary care vignette survey.

Objectives: The International Cancer Benchmarking Partnership (ICBP) is a collaboration between 6 countries and 12 jurisdictions with similar primary care-led health services. This study investigates primary care physician (PCP) behaviour and systems that may contribute to the timeliness of investigating for cancer and subsequently, international survival differences.

Design: A validated survey administered to PCPs via the internet set out in two parts: direct questions on primary care structure and practice relating to cancer diagnosis, and clinical vignettes, assessing management of scenarios relating to the diagnosis of lung, colorectal or ovarian cancer.

Monte Carlo linear accelerator simulation of megavoltage photon beams: independent determination of initial beam parameters.

Purpose: To individually benchmark the incident electron parameters in a Monte Carlo model of an Elekta linear accelerator operating at 6 and 15 MV. The main objective is to establish a simplified but still precise benchmarking procedure that allows accurate dose calculations of advanced treatment techniques.

Methods: The EGSnrc Monte Carlo user codes BEAMnrc and DOSXYZnrc are used for photon beam simulations and dose calculations, respectively.

Superficial doses in breast cancer radiotherapy using conventional and IMRT techniques: a film-based phantom study.

Background And Purpose: Superficial doses in radiotherapy are affected by the treatment technique. The implications for breast cancer treatments were evaluated.

Material And Methods: Four treatment techniques relevant for breast cancer irradiation were evaluated; tangential standard, tangential IMRT, 7-field IMRT (arc-like field arrangement) and hybrid IMRT (an IMRT plan mixed with non-modulated fields).