Medical Physics Seminar – Monday, December 12, 2016
Intensity Modulated Proton Therapy and Proton Imaging: Realizing the full potential for proton therapy
Mark Pankuch, PhD (hosted by Dr. Wesley Culberson)
Director of Medical Physics, CDH Proton Center, Chicago, IL - USA
External Beam Proton Therapy is an emerging tool in the fight against some forms of cancer. The specific properties of the high energy protons can be used to deposit dose into the target while reducing toxic doses to nearby critical structures, thus increasing the therapeutic ratio of the patient's treatment. One cutting edge advancement in proton therapy techniques is the delivery method of Intensity Modulated Proton Therapy (IMPT) where the proton beam is delivered through a magnetically focused spot that provides control of both intensity and position of the proton beam.
This talk will compare standard aperture / compensator based proton delivery to IMPT delivery and discuss the addition benefits and capabilities of IMPT. The different IMPT optimization techniques of Single Field Optimization (SFO) and Multi Field Optimization (MFO) will be summarized along with examination of strengths and weakness of both. Finally, the role of advances in proton range determination that include dual energy CT, proton radiography and proton tomography will be introduced with an explanation of how these improvements are of critical importance in the effort to reach the full potential of IMPT methods.