Computational dosimetry and treatment planning considerations for neutron capture therapy
Computational dosimetry and treatment planning considerations for neutron capture therapy
复制标题
中子俘获疗法的计算剂量测定和治疗计划注意事项
作者：
D. Nigg
概述
中子俘获疗法（NCT）的研究和临床应用通常需要专门的治疗计划软件系统。在许多其他治疗模式中适用的标准简化近似方法通常不适用于中子输运问题。通常必须获得控制输运方程的明确三维数值解，并充分考虑与能量相关的中子散射。在过去15年中成功应用于NCT的治疗计划系统依靠蒙特卡罗随机模拟方法进行必要的计算，这主要是因为人体解剖结构的几何复杂性。然而，从历史上看，人们也对确定性方法的应用感兴趣，并且在这一领域已经有了一些实际进展。最近，人们的兴趣转向创建不限于任何特定治疗模式的治疗计划软件，NCT只是其中几个应用之一。NCT治疗计划的一个关键问题与硼的定量有关，以及有关硼的空间生物分布的改进信息是否能有效地用于改进治疗计划过程。NCT计算的验证和基准测试也是当前的发展热点。各个机构都有自己的程序，但标准验证模型尚未广泛使用。
SummarySpecialized treatment planning software systems are generally required for neutron capture therapy (NCT) research and clinical applications. The standard simplifying approximations that work well for treatment planning computations in the case of many other modalities are usually not appropriate for application to neutron transport. One generally must obtain an explicit three-dimensional numerical solution of the governing transport equation, with energy-dependent neutron scattering completely taken into account. Treatment planning systems that have been successfully introduced for NCT applications over the past 15 years rely on the Monte Carlo stochastic simulation method for the necessary computations, primarily because of the geometric complexity of human anatomy. However, historically, there has also been interest in the application of deterministic methods, and there have been some practical developments in this area. Most recently, interest has turned toward the creation of treatment planning soft-ware that is not limited to any specific therapy modality, with NCT as only one of several applications. A key issue with NCT treatment planning has to do with boron quantification, and whether improved information concerning the spatial biodistribution of boron can be effectively used to improve the treatment planning process. Validation and benchmarking of computations for NCT are also of current development interest. Various institutions have their own procedures, but standard validation models are not yet in wide use.