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TH‐AB‐202‐02: Real‐Time Verification and Error Detection for MLC Tracking Deliveries Using An Electronic Portal Imaging Device
Author(s) -
J Zwan B,
Colvill E,
Booth J,
J O'Connor D,
Keall P,
B Greer P
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
medical physics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.473
H-Index - 180
eISSN - 2473-4209
pISSN - 0094-2405
DOI - 10.1118/1.4958066
Subject(s) - computer science , collimator , tracking (education) , computer vision , artificial intelligence , tracking system , software , nuclear medicine , medicine , physics , optics , filter (signal processing) , psychology , pedagogy , programming language
Purpose: The added complexity of the real‐time adaptive multi‐leaf collimator (MLC) tracking increases the likelihood of undetected MLC delivery errors. In this work we develop and test a system for real‐time delivery verification and error detection for MLC tracking radiotherapy using an electronic portal imaging device (EPID). Methods: The delivery verification system relies on acquisition and real‐time analysis of transit EPID image frames acquired at 8.41 fps. In‐house software was developed to extract the MLC positions from each image frame. Three comparison metrics were used to verify the MLC positions in real‐time: (1) field size, (2) field location and, (3) field shape. The delivery verification system was tested for 8 VMAT MLC tracking deliveries (4 prostate and 4 lung) where real patient target motion was reproduced using a Hexamotion motion stage and a Calypso system. Sensitivity and detection delay was quantified for various types of MLC and system errors. Results: For both the prostate and lung test deliveries the MLC‐defined field size was measured with an accuracy of 1.25 cm 2 (1 SD). The field location was measured with an accuracy of 0.6 mm and 0.8 mm (1 SD) for lung and prostate respectively. Field location errors (i.e. tracking in wrong direction) with a magnitude of 3 mm were detected within 0.4 s of occurrence in the X direction and 0.8 s in the Y direction. Systematic MLC gap errors were detected as small as 3 mm. The method was not found to be sensitive to random MLC errors and individual MLC calibration errors up to 5 mm. Conclusion: EPID imaging may be used for independent real‐time verification of MLC trajectories during MLC tracking deliveries. Thresholds have been determined for error detection and the system has been shown to be sensitive to a range of delivery errors.