The use of electronic portal imaging devices for the dosimetric verification of complex radiotherapy treatments [ 2006 - 2008 ]

Research Grant

Researchers: Dr Andrew Fielding (Principal investigator) ,  Dr Brendan Healy ,  Dr Phil Evans ,  Prof Bryan Burmeister

Brief description The prognosis for someone diagnosed with cancer is much better than commonly believed. If detected early, malignant tumours are generally well localised. During these early stages of tumour growth high doses of radiation therapy can with a high probability, eradicate a cancer but come with the cost of causing unacceptable damage to normal tissue. A specific goal of improving the technology of radiation therapy is to reduce the probability of damage to normal tissue. Achieving this goal may allow delivery of higher doses with an associated increase in the chance of controlling the tumour. One of the challenges in radiation therapy is that tumours do not come in shapes that are easy to treat. Tumours extend into cavities and push aside healthy organs growing into complex 3D shapes. The careful shaping of the radiation beams to deliver dose distributions that match the 3D shape of the target is known as 3D conformal radiotherapy (3DCRT). Intensity Modulated Radiotherapy (IMRT) is an advanced form of 3DCRT that allows the delivered dose to be closely tailored to the shape of complex tumour volumes while sparing neighbouring healthy tissues. One of the consequences of increasing the conformality of radiation therapy is an increased sensitivity to errors in the preparation and execution of the treatment. If the maximum gain in the treatment outcome using 3DCRT and IMRT techniques is to be achieved then it is crucial that the correct volume is treated to the correct dose on each day of the treatment. This requires new improved methods and techniques for verifying the daily delivery of the treatment. In this project we aim to develop the use of online digital imaging devices for measuring the delivered dose during treatment. This will increase the confidence with which these new conformal radiotherapy techniques can be delivered allowing their true potential for improving patient treatment outcomes to be realised.

Funding Amount $AUD 260,949.83

Funding Scheme NHMRC Project Grants

Notes Standard Project Grant