Validation of a secondary dose check tool against Monte Carlo and analytical clinical dose calculation algorithms in VMAT

Abstract

Purpose: Patient-specific quality assurance (QA) is very important in radiotherapy, especially for patients with highly conformed treatment plans like VMAT plans. Traditional QA protocols for these plans are time-consuming reducing considerably the time available for patient treatments. In this work, a new MC-based secondary dose check software (SciMoCa) is evaluated and benchmarked against well-established TPS (Monaco and Pinnacle 3) by means of treatment plans and dose measurements. Methods: Fifty VMAT plans have been computed using same calculation parameters with SciMoCa and the two primary TPSs. Plans were validated with measurements performed with a 3D diode detector (ArcCHECK) by translating patient plans to phantom geometry. Calculation accuracy was assessed by measuring point dose differences and gamma passing rates (GPR) from a 3D gamma analysis with 3%-2 mm criteria. Comparison between SciMoCa and primary TPS calculations was made using the same estimators and using both patient and phantom geometry plans. Results: TPS and SciMoCa calculations were found to be in very good agreement with validation measurements with average point dose differences of 0.7 AE 1.7% and −0.2 AE 1.6% for SciMoCa and two TPSs, respectively. Comparison between SciMoCa calculations and the two primary TPS plans did not show any statistically significant difference with average point dose differences compatible with zero within error for both patient and phantom geometry plans and GPR (98.0 AE 3.0% and 99.0 AE 3.0% respectively) well in excess of the typical 95%clinical tolerance threshold. Conclusion: This work presents results obtained with a significantly larger sample than other similar analyses and, to the authors' knowledge, compares SciMoCa with a MC-based TPS for the first time. Results show that a MC-based secondary patient-specific QA is a clinically viable, reliable, and promising technique, that potentially allows significant time saving that can be used for patient treatment and a per-plan basis QA that effectively complements traditional commissioning and calibration protocols.

Extending in aqua portal dosimetry with dose inhomogeneity conversion maps for accurate patient dose reconstruction in external beam radiotherapy

“…The SciMoCa dose engine (ScientificRT GmbH, Munich, Germany) was used for calculations using a dose grid size of 2 mm [27] , [28] . The CT number to mass density conversion map was set equal to the one used in our TPS.…”

Correlation between the γ passing rates of IMRT plans and the volumes of air cavities and bony structures in head and neck cancer

“…The accelerator head was commissioned on the basis of depth dose curves, profile curves measured at five depths (1.5, 5, 10, 20, 30 cm) and output factors for square fields (3 × 3, 5 × 5, 10 × 10, 15 × 15, 20 × 20, 30 × 30, 40 × 40 mm 2 ). The dosimetry leaf gap and leaf transmission of the MLC were configured to match the measured data [ 26 ].…”

Investigation of a 3D dosimetry system utilizing radio‐chromic gel and telecentric optical‐CT readout

“…In addition to calculation in the primary treatment planning system, the radiosurgery plans were second checked using an independent Monte Carlo dose calculation algorithm (SciMoCa, Scientific RT Version 1.5.1.2890, Heidelberg, Germany) that was customized and commissioned independent of the primary TPS for multi-target radiosurgery. 18,19 The beam model was customized for use with single isocenter SRS in a process which consisted of (1) definition and acquisition of measurement data required for beam modeling, ( 2)…”