Simultaneous imaging of luminescence and prompt x-rays during irradiation with spot-scanning proton beams at clinical dose level.

Prompt x-ray imaging is a promising method for observing the beam shape from outside a subject. However, its distribution is different from dose distribution, and thus a comparison with the dose is required. Meanwhile, luminescence imaging of water is a possible method for imaging the dose distribution. Consequently, we performed simultaneous imaging of luminescence and prompt x-rays during irradiation by proton beams to compare the distributions between these two different imaging methods. Optical imaging of water was conducted with spot-scanning proton beams at clinical dose level during irradiation to a fluorescein (FS) water phantom set in a black box. Prompt x-ray imaging was also conducted simultaneously from outside the black box using a developed x-ray camera during proton beam irradiation to the phantom. We measured images of the luminescence of FS water and prompt x-rays for various types of proton beams, including pencil beams, spread-out Bragg peak (SOBP) beams, and clinically used therapy beams. After the imaging, ranges were estimated from FS water and prompt x-rays and compared with those calculated with a treatment planning system (TPS). We could measure the prompt x-ray and FS water images simultaneously for all types of proton beams. The ranges estimated from the FS water and those calculated with the TPS closely matched, within a difference of several mm. Similar range difference was found between the results estimated from prompt x-ray images and those calculated with the TPS. We confirmed that the simultaneous imaging of luminescence and prompt x-rays were possible during irradiation with spot-scanning proton beams at a clinical dose level. This method can be applied to range estimation as well as comparison with the dose for prompt x-ray imaging or other imaging methods used in therapy with various types of proton beams at a clinical dose level. © 2023 IOP Publishing Ltd.

Citation

Seiichi Yamamoto, Tomohiro Yamashita, Yusuke Kobashi, Takuya Yabe, Takashi Akagi, Mitsutaka Yamaguchi, Naoki Kawachi, Kei Kamada, Akira Yoshikawa, Jun Kataoka. Simultaneous imaging of luminescence and prompt x-rays during irradiation with spot-scanning proton beams at clinical dose level. Biomedical physics & engineering express. 2023 Jun 30;9(4)

Mesh Tags

Substances

PMID: 37387419

search → result