Computational techniques for studying the interactions of radiation with matter and applications in radiotherapy physics

研究辐射与物质相互作用的计算技术及其在放射治疗物理中的应用

• 批准号: RGPIN-2016-06267
• 负责人: Thomson, Rowan
• 金额: $ 2.4万
• 依托单位: Carleton University
• 依托单位国家: 加拿大
• 项目类别: Discovery Grants Program - Individual
• 财政年份: 2019
• 资助国家: 加拿大
• 起止时间: 2019-01-01 至 2020-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/ase-oro/Details-Detailles_eng.asp?id=684607
• 关键词: Computational; techniques; studying; interactions; radiation

Radiotherapy is commonly used as a treatment for cancer. All forms of radiotherapy aim to maximize tumour cell kill while limiting healthy tissue radiation exposure. Despite the widespread application of radiotherapy to treat cancer, fundamental questions relating to the interactions of radiation with matter remain. Further, potential future treatment methods prompt new areas of investigation. This research program involves the development and application of sophisticated computer codes which employ the so-called 'Monte Carlo' (MC) method to model the passage of radiation through matter. These MC simulations can be used to compute dose, the energy deposited by radiation in tissue, as well as to study a wide array of questions relevant for radiotherapy treatments.*** An existing treatment to be considered is brachytherapy, in which radioactive sources are placed next to or inside a tumour (in, e.g., the prostate, breast, or eye). Widely-used dose calculation algorithms are inaccurate; a fast, accurate, and comprehensive MC dose calculation program is under development and will be used to study brachytherapy physics.***There is increasing interest in simulating radiation interactions and radiation-induced damage at the level of cellular constituents and DNA to understand the biological effects of radiation. Simulations of microscopic tissue structure including cells and their components present computational challenges; furthermore, new approaches consistent with modern quantum physics may be required at very low energies and short distance scales. New methods for performing simulations of radiation transport on multiple scales, from patient-level down to cells and cell components in tissue, will be developed. These techniques will be applied to understand patterns of energy deposition within tissue for different radiation sources, towards developing an understanding of the biological effects of radiation. These new computational approaches will also be applied to study potential future treatment techniques such as delivery of radiotherapy involving nanometre-sized devices and other targeted therapies.*** This research will advance our knowledge of the interactions of radiation with matter and radiation dosimetry. It will yield new computational techniques to simulate radiation transport from macroscopic to microscopic length scales. Computer codes developed will be disseminated to the international research community to foster further research. The results of this research program will find application in many fields involving radiation physics including diagnostic imaging, radiation protection, radiobiology, and radiation therapy. This research will contribute to the development of new treatment techniques, as well as yielding new insights into past and current treatments. **

放射治疗通常用于治疗癌症。所有形式的放射治疗都旨在最大限度地杀死肿瘤细胞，同时限制健康组织的辐射暴露。尽管放射疗法广泛应用于治疗癌症，但有关放射与物质相互作用的基本问题仍然存在。此外，潜在的未来治疗方法促使新的研究领域。这项研究计划涉及开发和应用复杂的计算机代码，这些代码采用所谓的“蒙特卡罗”（MC）方法来模拟辐射穿过物质的通道。这些MC模拟可用于计算剂量，辐射在组织中沉积的能量，以及研究与放射治疗相关的一系列广泛问题。***目前考虑的一种治疗方法是近距离放射治疗，将放射源放置在肿瘤旁边或肿瘤内部（如前列腺、乳房或眼睛）。广泛使用的剂量计算算法是不准确的；一个快速，准确，全面的MC剂量计算程序正在开发中，并将用于研究近距离治疗物理。***人们对在细胞成分和DNA水平上模拟辐射相互作用和辐射引起的损伤以了解辐射的生物效应越来越感兴趣。微观组织结构（包括细胞及其组成部分）的模拟存在计算挑战；此外，在非常低的能量和短距离尺度下，可能需要与现代量子物理学相一致的新方法。将开发用于从患者水平到组织中的细胞和细胞成分等多个尺度上进行辐射传输模拟的新方法。这些技术将被应用于了解不同辐射源下组织内能量沉积的模式，以发展对辐射生物效应的理解。这些新的计算方法也将应用于研究潜在的未来治疗技术，例如涉及纳米设备的放射治疗和其他靶向治疗。这项研究将促进我们对辐射与物质相互作用和辐射剂量学的认识。它将产生新的计算技术来模拟从宏观到微观长度尺度的辐射传输。编写的计算机代码将分发给国际研究界，以促进进一步的研究。该研究项目的成果将应用于放射物理学的许多领域，包括诊断成像、辐射防护、放射生物学和放射治疗。这项研究将有助于开发新的治疗技术，并对过去和现在的治疗方法产生新的见解。**