Deformable image registration for cervical cancer brachytherapy dose accumulation: Organ at risk dose–volume histogram parameter reproducibility and anatomic position stability

Determining Combined Modality Dosimetric Constraints by Integration of IMRT and LDR Prostate Brachytherapy Dosimetry and Correlation with Toxicity

Purpose

Intermediate- and high-risk prostate cancer patients undergoing combination external beam radiation therapy (EBRT) and low dose rate (LDR) brachytherapy have demonstrated increased genitourinary (GU) toxicity. We have previously demonstrated a method to combine EBRT and LDR dosimetry. In this work, we use this technique for a sample of patients with intermediate- and high-risk prostate cancer, correlate with clinical toxicity, and suggest preliminary summed organ-at-risk constraints for future investigation.

Methods and Materials

Intensity modulated EBRT and ¹⁰³Pd-based LDR treatment plans were combined for 138 patients using biological effective dose (BED) and deformable image registration. GU and gastrointestinal (GI) toxicity were compared with combined dosimetry for the urethra, bladder, and rectum. Differences between doses in each toxicity grade were assessed by analysis of variance (α = 0.05). Combined dosimetric constraints are proposed using the mean organ-at-risk dose, subtracting 1 standard deviation for a conservative recommendation.

Results

The majority of our 138-patient cohort experienced grade 0 to 2 GU or GI toxicity. Six grade 3 toxicities were noted. Mean prostate BED D90 (± 1 standard deviation) was 165.5±11.1 Gy. Mean urethra BED D10 was 230.3±33.9 Gy. Mean bladder BED was 35.2±11.0 Gy. Mean rectum BED D2cc was 85.6±24.3 Gy. Significant dosimetric differences between toxicity grades were found for mean bladder BED, bladder D15, and rectum D50, but differences between individual means were not statistically significant. Given the low incidence of grade 3 GU and GI toxicity, we propose urethra D10 <200 Gy, rectum D2cc <60 Gy, and bladder D15 <45 Gy as preliminary dose constraints for combined modality therapy.

Conclusions

We successfully applied our dose integration technique to a sample of patients with intermediate- and high-risk prostate cancer. Incidence of grade 3 toxicity was low, suggesting that combined doses observed in this study were safe. We suggest preliminary dose constraints as a conservative starting point to investigate and escalate prospectively in a future study.

Applying Multi-Metric Deformable Image Registration for Dose Accumulation in Combined Cervical Cancer Radiotherapy

(1) Purpose: Challenges remain in dose accumulation for cervical cancer radiotherapy combined with external beam radiotherapy (EBRT) and brachytherapy (BT) as there are many large and complex organ deformations between different treatments. This study aims to improve deformable image registration (DIR) accuracy with the introduction of multi-metric objectives for dose accumulation of EBRT and BT. (2) Materials and methods: Twenty cervical cancer patients treated with EBRT (45-50 Gy/25 fractions) and high-dose-rate BT (≥20 Gy in 4 fractions) were included for DIR. The multi-metric DIR algorithm included an intensity-based metric, three contour-based metrics, and a penalty term. Nonrigid B-spine transformation was used to transform the planning CT images from EBRT to the first BT, with a six-level resolution registration strategy. To evaluate its performance, the multi-metric DIR was compared with a hybrid DIR provided by commercial software. The DIR accuracy was measured by the Dice similarity coefficient (DSC) and Hausdorff distance (HD) between deformed and reference organ contours. The accumulated maximum dose of 2 cc (D_2cc) of the bladder and rectum was calculated and compared to simply addition of D_2cc from EBRT and BT (ΔD_2cc). (3) Results: The mean DSC of all organ contours for the multi-metric DIR were significantly higher than those for the hybrid DIR (p ≤ 0.011). In total, 70% of patients had DSC > 0.8 using the multi-metric DIR, while 15% of patients had DSC > 0.8 using the commercial hybrid DIR. The mean ΔD_2cc of the bladder and rectum for the multi-metric DIR were 3.25 ± 2.29 and 3.54 ± 2.02 Gy_EQD2, respectively, whereas those for the hybrid DIR were 2.68 ± 2.56 and 2.32 ± 3.25 Gy_EQD2, respectively. The multi-metric DIR resulted in a much lower proportion of unrealistic D_2cc than the hybrid DIR (2.5% vs. 17.5%). (4) Conclusions: Compared with the commercial hybrid DIR, the introduced multi-metric DIR significantly improved the registration accuracy and resulted in a more reasonable accumulated dose distribution.

Dose evaluations of organs at risk and predictions of gastrointestinal toxicity after re-irradiation with stereotactic body radiation therapy for pancreatic cancer by deformable image registration

Purpose

Re-irradiation of locally recurrent pancreatic cancer may be an optimal choice as a local ablative therapy. However, dose constraints of organs at risk (OARs) predictive of severe toxicity remain unknown. Therefore, we aim to calculate and identify accumulated dose distributions of OARs correlating with severe adverse effects and determine possible dose constraints regarding re-irradiation.

Methods

Patients receiving two courses of stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) for the same irradiated regions (the primary tumors) due to local recurrence were included. All doses of the first and second plans were recalculated to an equivalent dose of 2 Gy per fraction (EQD₂). Deformable image registration with the workflow "Dose Accumulation-Deformable" of the MIM^® System (version: 6.6.8) was performed for dose summations. Dose-volume parameters predictive of grade 2 or more toxicities were identified, and the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was used to determine optimal thresholds of dose constraints.

Results

Forty patients were included in the analysis. Only the V ₁₀ of the stomach [hazard ratio (HR): 1.02 (95% CI:1.00-1.04), P = 0.035] and D _mean of the intestine [HR: 1.78 (95% CI: 1.00-3.18), P = 0.049] correlated with grade 2 or more gastrointestinal toxicity. Hence, the equation of probability of such toxicity was P = 1 1 + e - ( - 4.155 + 0.579 D mean of the intestine + 0.021 V 10  of the stomach ) Additionally, the area under the ROC curve and threshold of dose constraints of V ₁₀ of the stomach and D _mean of the intestine were 0.779 and 77.575 cc, 0.769 and 4.22 Gy₃ (α/β = 3), respectively. The area under the ROC curve of the equation was 0.821.

Conclusion

The V ₁₀ of the stomach and D _mean of the intestine may be vital parameters to predict grade 2 or more gastrointestinal toxicity, of which the threshold of dose constraints may be beneficial for the practice of re-irradiation of locally relapsed pancreatic cancer.

Four-Dimensional Image-Guided Adaptive Brachytherapy for Cervical Cancer: A Systematic Review and Meta-Regression Analysis

Purpose

The ICRU/GEC-ESTRO released the ICRU Report No. 89, which introduced the concept of four-dimensional brachytherapy and ushered in a new era of brachytherapy for cervical cancer. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the local control and late toxicity of four-dimensional brachytherapy in cervical cancer through a systematic review and to reveal the dose-response relationship between the volumetric dose paraments and the local control rate via a probit model.

Material and Methods

We identified studies that reported the HR-CTV D90 and local control probabilities by searching the PubMed Database, the Web of Science Core Collection and the Cochrane Library Database through February 1st, 2022. Regression analyses were performed between the HR-CTV D90 and the local control probability using a probit model.

Results

Nineteen studies enrolling 3,616 patients were included. The probit model showed a significant relationship between the HR-CTV D90 value and IR-CTV D90 Vs. the local control probability, P &lt; 0.001 and P = 0.003, respectively. The D90 for HR-CTV and IR-CTV corresponding to a probability of 90% local control was 79.1 GyEQD2,10 (95% CI:69.8 – 83.7 GyEQD2,10) and 66.5 GyEQD2,10 (95% CI: 62.8 - 67.9 GyEQD2,10), respectively. The limits for the prescribed dose of 85 GyEQD2,10 for HR-CTV D90 theoretically warranted a 92.1% (95% CI: 90.2% - 95.3%) local control rate, and 87.2% (95% CI: 82.4% - 91.8%) local control probability was expected for 65 GyEQD2,10 to IR-CTV D90. The probit model showed no significant relationship between the D2cc to organs at risk and the probability of grade 3 and above gastrointestinal or genitourinary toxicity.

Conclusions

Four-dimensional brachytherapy takes into account uncertain factors such as tumour regression, internal organ motion and organ filling, and provides a more accurate and more therapeutic ratio delivery through adaptive delineation and replanning, replacement of the applicator, and the addition of interstitial needles. The dose volume effect relationship of four-dimensional brachytherapy between the HR-CTV D90 and the local control rate provides an objective planning aim dose.

Dose Summation Strategies for External Beam Radiation Therapy and Brachytherapy in Gynecologic Malignancy: A Review from the NRG Oncology and NCTN Medical Physics Subcommittees

Definitive, nonsurgical management of gynecologic malignancies involves external beam radiation therapy (EBRT) and/or brachytherapy (BT). Summation of the cumulative dose is critical to assess the total biologic effective dose to targets and organs at risk. Cumulative dose calculation from EBRT and BT can be performed with or without image registration (IR) and biologic dose summation. Among these dose summation strategies, linear addition of dose-volume histogram (DVH) parameters without IR is the global standard for composite dose reporting. This approach stems from an era without image guidance and simple external beam and brachytherapy treatment approaches. With technological advances, EBRT and high-dose-rate BT have evolved to allow for volume-based treatment planning and delivery. Modern conformal therapeutic radiation involves volumetric or intensity modulated EBRT, capable of simultaneously treating multiple targets at different specified dose levels. Therefore, given the complexity of modern radiation treatment, the linear addition of DVH parameters from EBRT and high-dose-rate BT is challenging to represent the combined dose distribution. Deformable image registration (DIR) between EBRT and image guided brachytherapy (IGBT) data sets may provide a more nuanced calculation of multimodal dose accumulation. However, DIR is still nascent in this regard, and needs further development for accuracy and efficiency for clinical use. Biologic dose summation can combine physical dose maps from EBRT and each IGBT fraction, thereby generating a composite DVH from the biologic effective dose. However, accurate radiobiologic parameters are tissue-dependent and not well characterized. A combination of voxel-based DIR and biologic weighted dose maps may be the best approximation of dose accumulation but remains invalidated. The purpose of this report is to review dose summation strategies for EBRT and BT, including conventional equivalent dose in 2-Gy fractions dose summation without image registration, physical dose summation using 3-dimensional rigid IR and DIR, and biologic dose summation. We also provide general clinical workflows for IGBT with a focus on cervical cancer.

Interfraction dose deviation and catheter position in cervical interstitial and intracavitary image guided HDR brachytherapy

Interstitial and intracavitary gynecological HDR brachytherapy involve precise, localized delivery to targets with high dose gradients, sparing adjacent organs at risk (OAR). Due to the proximity of the rectum, bowel and bladder to the target, deviations in the applicator or catheter with respect to patient anatomy can significantly increase dose to OAR. The magnitude and direction of applicator and catheter migration at each fraction was assessed for template interstitial and tandem and ring (T&R) cohorts. The cohort included twelve gynecological patients with intact cervical lesions treated with external beam and brachytherapy. Pre-treatment CT images were registered to the simulation CT with respect to the target. Treatment catheter positions transformed into the planning CT coordinate system to evaluate localized catheter displacement and dose distributions calculated at each fraction. Dose was evaluated on the planning CT with planning contours and dwell locations at treatment position. Absolute deviation, depth and deflection angle for all patients were 4.6 ± 4.2 mm, -1.4 ± 4.0 mm, and 3.1 ± 2.3° respectively (n = 516 catheter positions for all treatment fractions and patients, mean ± SD). Absolute catheter deviation and deflection magnitude for interstitial treatments increased overall with each subsequent fraction with an overall increase of catheter retraction at each fraction (p < 0.005, n = 492 catheters, Kruskal-Wallis). A target EQD2 D90 reduction of 10 ± 10% and 7.7 ± 8.7% of the planned dose for interstitial and T&R cohorts respectively. There was an overall increase in bladder and rectal doses at each fraction. Catheter tracking in interstitial and intracavitary gynecological treatments with CT imaging revealed significant changes in catheter positioning with respect to the target volume. Overall deviations increased in magnitude with each subsequent fraction in the interstitial treatments. This caused patient dosimetry deviations, including target dose reduction and adjacent OAR doses changes.

Estimating the accumulative dose uncertainty for intracavitary and interstitial brachytherapy

BACKGROUND

Image-guided adaptive brachytherapy shows the ability to deliver high doses to tumors while sparing normal tissues. However, interfraction dose delivery introduces uncertainties to high dose estimation, which relates to normal tissue toxicity. The purpose of this study was to investigate the high-dose regions of two applicator approaches in brachytherapy.

METHOD

For 32 cervical cancer patients, the CT images from each fraction were wrapped to a reference image, and the displacement vector field (DVF) was calculated with a hybrid intensity-based deformable registration algorithm. The fractional dose was then accumulated to calculate the position and the overlap of high dose (D2cc) during multiple fractions.

RESULT

The overall Dice similarity coefficient (DSC) of the deformation algorithm for the bladder and the rectum was (0.97 and 0.91). No significant difference was observed between the two applicators. However, the location of the intracavitary brachytherapy (ICBT) high-dose region was relatively concentrated. The overlap volume of bladder and rectum D2cc was 0.42 and 0.71, respectively, which was higher than that of interstitial brachytherapy (ISBT) (0.26 and 0.31). The cumulative dose was overestimated in ISBT cases when using the GEC-recommended method. The ratio of bladder and rectum D2cc to the GEC method was 0.99 and 1, respectively, which was higher than that of the ISBT method (0.96 and 0.94).

CONCLUSION

High-dose regions for brachytherapy based on different applicator types were different. The 3D-printed ICBT has better high-dose region consistency than freehand ISBT and hence is more predictable.

Dose fusion and efficacy evaluation of different radical radiotherapy doses for cervical cancer

BACKGROUND

The recommended external beam radiotherapy (EBRT) dose for cervical cancer is 40-50 Gy, but there is no consensus. In this study, 45-Gy and 50.4-Gy treatment groups were compared for fused doses to target tumor areas and organs at risk (OARs), clinical efficacy, and quality of life.

METHODS

Seventy-nine cases receiving radical radiotherapy within the past 3 years were retrospectively analyzed. EBRT and three-dimensional brachytherapy dose fusion values were calculated for target areas and OARs using Elastix V5.0. Clinical efficacy was assessed using Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors (RECIST), adverse events using Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events v4.03 (CTCAE4.03), and quality of life using the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire-Core 30 (EORTC QLQ-C30).

RESULTS

Minimum fused dose delivered to 90% of the high-risk clinical target volume (HRCTV D90) did not differ significantly between 45-Gy and 50.4-Gy groups, whereas D2cc values of rectum and bladder (OARs) were significantly lower in the 45-Gy group (both p < 0.05). Further analysis showed that these D2cc differences resulted primarily from EBRT. No grade III-IV adverse events were observed in either group during follow up. Short-term clinical efficacy, adverse events, and EORTC QLQ-C30 functional and symptom scales also did not differ significantly between groups (all p > 0.05). However, quality of life was markedly higher in the 45-Gy group (p < 0.05).

CONCLUSION

Appropriate EBRT dose reduction can reduce OAR irradiation without compromising total target area dose or clinical efficacy. Dose fusion can facilitate the judicious choice of EBRT to limit OAR exposure, reduce adverse events, and enhance the quality of life.

Accuracy of registrations between cone-beam computed tomography and conventional computed tomography images and dose mapping methods in RaySearch software for the bladder during brachytherapy of cervical cancer patients

Purpose

The aim of the study was to assess selected methods of image registration available in the RaySearch software and their impact on the accuracy of mapping of doses deposited in the bladder during brachytherapy (BRT) of cervical cancer in images used during external beam radiotherapy (EBRT).

Material and methods

The study was based on data from ten patients. Cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) images (BRT) were aligned with CT images (EBRT) using four registration methods: Reg_1 (rigid), Reg_2a, Reg_2b (hybrid), and Reg_3 (biomechanical). Image mapping accuracy was evaluated based on bladder’s anatomy. Sørensen-Dice coefficient (DSC) values were analyzed for all the registrations. Discrepancies between triangular mesh points set on the basis of bladder contours were analyzed. Dose distributions from BRT were transformed according to registration results and mapped on CT images. Original BRT doses deposited in 2 cm³ volume of the bladder were compared to those transformed and associated with bladder’s volume determined on CT images.

Results

Mean DSC values amounted to 0.36 (Reg_1), 0.87 and 0.88 (Reg_2a and Reg_2b), and 0.97 (Reg_3). Significant differences were found between DSC for the following comparisons: Reg_3/Reg_1 (p = 0.001), Reg_2a/Reg_1 (p = 0.011), and Reg_2b/Reg_1 (p = 0.014). The lowest discrepancies between triangular mesh points were for Reg_3 (p < 0.001, Reg_3 vs. Reg_1, and p = 0.039, Reg_3 vs. Reg_2b). Finally, the lowest discrepancies between the original and transformed doses were found for Reg_3. Nevertheless, only 5 out of 10 observations for Reg_3 yielded error of less than 5%.

Conclusions

Biomechanical registration (Reg_3) enabled the most accurate alignment between CBCT and CT images. Satisfactory registration results of anatomical structures do not guarantee a correct mapping of primary BRT doses on the bladder delineated on CT images during EBRT. The results of dose transformation based on biomechanical registration had an error of less than 5% for only 50% of the observations.

Deforming to Best Practice: Key considerations for deformable image registration in radiotherapy

Image registration is a process that underlies many new techniques in radiation oncology - from multimodal imaging and contour propagation in treatment planning to dose accumulation throughout treatment. Deformable image registration (DIR) is a subset of image registration subject to high levels of complexity in process and validation. A need for local guidance to assist in high-quality utilisation and best practice was identified within the Australian community, leading to collaborative activity and workshops. This report communicates the current limitations and best practice advice from early adopters to help guide those implementing DIR in the clinic at this early stage. They are based on the state of image registration applications in radiotherapy in Australia and New Zealand (ANZ), and consensus discussions made at the 'Deforming to Best Practice' workshops in 2018. The current status of clinical application use cases is presented, including multimodal imaging, automatic segmentation, adaptive radiotherapy, retreatment, dose accumulation and response assessment, along with uptake, accuracy and limitations. Key areas of concern and preliminary suggestions for commissioning, quality assurance, education and training, and the use of automation are also reported. Many questions remain, and the radiotherapy community will benefit from continued research in this area. However, DIR is available to clinics and this report is intended to aid departments using or about to use DIR tools now.

Assessing cumulative dose distributions in combined external beam radiotherapy and intracavitary brachytherapy for cervical cancer by treatment planning based on deformable image registration

BACKGROUND

This study aimed to validate the feasibility of deformable image registration (DIR) in assessing the cumulative dose distributions in combined external beam radiotherapy (EBRT) and intracavitary brachytherapy (ICBT) for cervical cancer.

METHODS

This retrospective study included 23 patients with stage IIB disease treated with combined EBRT to the whole pelvis (50.4 Gy in 28 fractions) using an intensity-modulated radiotherapy technique with 6-MV X-ray, followed by three-dimensional (3D) ICBT (28 Gy in 4 fractions). Tumor gross target volume at diagnosis (GTV-Tinit), tumor gross target volume before brachytherapy, high-risk clinical target volume (HR-CTV), intermediate-risk clinical target volume (IR-CTV), and parametrium and organs at risk were recontoured on computed tomography images of EBRT and ICBT, respectively. The dose-volume parameters were also determined. The DIR results were reviewed using MIM Maestro (Reg Review) and modified by function (Reg Refine). To evaluate the accuracy of DIR, DIR-based cumulative dose-volume histogram (DVH) parameters and simple DVH parameter addition were compared using Wilcoxon rank-sum tests.

RESULTS

The cumulative dose distributions of EBRT and four ICBT sessions were successfully illustrated using DIR. The mean tumor diameters were 68.35 cm3 at diagnosis and 29.63 cm3 at ICBT initiation. The mean tumor regression was 56.6%. The median minimum dose covering 90% (D90) of HR-CTV, GTV-Tinit, IR-CTV, and parametrium were 69.58±4.94, 68.81±7.98, 59.28±3.78, and 60.97±1.1 Gyα/β=10, respectively, for DIR and 69.11±5.68, 68.49±8.62, 58.89±3.59, and 61±1.49 Gyα/β=10, respectively, with conventional simple DVH parameter addition.No statistically significant differences in dosimetric parameters were observed between the two methods.

CONCLUSIONS

Although there were limitations in the DIR accuracy, DIR-based dose accumulation was significantly beneficial in visually showing the cumulative dose distribution in the target area to clinicians in combined radiotherapy for cervical cancer in routine clinical practice.

Appropriate Methodology for EBRT and HDR Intracavitary/Interstitial Brachytherapy Dose Composite and Clinical Plan Evaluation for Patients With Cervical Cancer

PURPOSE

This study assessed the appropriateness of full parameter addition (FPA) methods with respect to the 3-dimensional deformable dose composite method for evaluating combined external beam radiation therapy (EBRT) and intracavitary brachytherapy (ICBT).

METHODS AND MATERIALS

A total of 22 patients who received EBRT and high-dose-rate ICBT were retrospectively evaluated. Split-ring and tandem applicators were used for all patients. Additional interstitial needles were used for 5 patients to supplement the implant. Deformable image registrations were performed to deform the secondary EBRT and ICBT planning computed tomography (CT) images onto the reference CT from the third fraction of ICBT. The Dice similarity coefficient was used to evaluate the quality of deformable registration. Doses were transferred to the reference CT, scaled to the equivalent dose in 2-Gy fractions and combined to create the dose composite. Eight dose-accumulation methods were evaluated and compared. D_2cc and D_0.1cc for organs at risk were investigated.

RESULTS

The differences in D_2cc for rectum, bladder, sigmoid, and bowel between the FPA method for whole-pelvis EBRT and ICBT, calculated using an old American Brachytherapy Society worksheet (FPA_E_h + I_old) and deformable composite for EBRT with boosts and ICBT (Def_E + B + I) were -2.19 ± 1.37 Gy_{α/β = 3}, -0.64 ± 1.13 Gy_{α/β = 3}, -2.06 ± 2.71 Gy_{α/β = 3}, and -1.59 ± 0.89 Gy_{α/β = 3}, respectively. The differences in D_2cc for rectum, bladder, sigmoid, and bowel between the new ABS worksheet (FPA_E_h + B + I_abs) and the Def_E + B + I method were 1.21 ± 1.22 Gy _{α/β = 3}, 1.93 ± 1.38 Gy_{α/β = 3}, 0.72 ± 1.12 Gy_{α/β = 3}, and 1.19 ± 1.46 Gy_{α/β = 3}, respectively. Differences in dose-volume histogram parameter values among Def_E + B + I and other FPA methods were not statistically significant (P > .05).

CONCLUSIONS

Compared with the FPA-based method, deformable registration-based dose composites demonstrated lower OAR D_2cc and D_0.1cc values; however, the differences were not statistically significant. The current ABS-recommended FPA-based sheet can serve as an acceptable plan evaluation tool for clinical purposes.

Evaluation of deformable image registration algorithm for determination of accumulated dose for brachytherapy of cervical cancer patients

Purpose

This study was designed to assess the dose accumulation (DA) of bladder and rectum between brachytherapy fractions using hybrid-based deformable image registration (DIR) and compare it with the simple summation (SS) approach of GEC-ESTRO in cervical cancer patients.

Material and methods

Patients (n = 137) with cervical cancer treated with 3D conformal radiotherapy and three fractions of high-dose-rate brachytherapy were selected. CT images were acquired to delineate organs at risk and targets according to GEC-ESTRO recommendations. In order to determine the DA for the bladder and rectum, hybrid-based DIR was done for three different fractions of brachytherapy and the results were compared with the standard GEC-ESTRO method. Also, we performed a phantom study to calculate the uncertainty of the hybrid-based DIR algorithm for contour matching and dose mapping.

Results

The mean ± standard deviation (SD) of the Dice similarity coefficient (DICE), Jaccard, Hausdorff distance (HD) and mean distance to agreement (MDA) in the DIR process were 0.94 ±0.02, 0.89 ±0.03, 8.44 ±3.56 and 0.72 ±0.22 for bladder and 0.89 ±0.05, 0.80 ±0.07, 15.46 ±10.14 and 1.19 ±0.59 for rectum, respectively. The median (Q1, Q3; maximum) Gy_EQD2 differences of total D_2cc between DIR-based and SS methods for the bladder and rectum were reduced by –1.53 (–0.86, –2.98; –9.17) and –1.38 (–0.80, –2.14; –7.11), respectively. The mean ± SD of DICE, Jaccard, HD, and MDA for contour matching were 0.98 ±0.008, 0.97 ±0.01, 2.00 ±0.70 and 0.20 ±0.04, respectively for large deformation. Maximum uncertainty of dose mapping was about 3.58%.

Conclusions

The hybrid-based DIR algorithm demonstrated low registration uncertainty for both contour matching and dose mapping. The DA difference between DIR-based and SS approaches was statistically significant for both bladder and rectum and hybrid-based DIR showed potential to assess DA between brachytherapy fractions.

Deep Learning Deformation Initialization for Rapid Groupwise Registration of Inhomogeneous Image Populations

Groupwise image registration tackles biases that can potentially arise from inappropriate template selection. It typically involves simultaneous registration of a cohort of images to a common space that is not specified a priori. Existing groupwise registration methods are computationally complex and are only effective for image populations without large anatomical variations. In this paper, we propose a deep learning framework to rapidly estimate large deformations between images to significantly reduce structural variability. Specifically, we employ a multi-level graph coarsening method to agglomerate similar images into clusters, each represented by an exemplar image. We then use a deep learning framework to predict the initial deformations between images. Warping with the estimated deformations brings the images closer in the image manifold and their alignment can be further refined using conventional groupwise registration algorithms. We evaluated the effectiveness of our method in groupwise registration of MR brain images and compared it against state-of-the-art groupwise registration methods. Experimental results indicate that deformation initialization enables groupwise registration to converge significantly faster with competitive accuracy, therefore facilitates large-scale imaging studies.

Dosimetric evaluation of Point A and volume-based high-dose-rate plans: a single institution study on adaptive brachytherapy planning for cervical cancer

Purpose

External beam radiation therapy (EBRT) and brachytherapy (BT) with concurrent cisplatin is the standard of care for locally advanced cervical cancer. The applicability of image-guided adaptive volume-based high-dose-rate (HDR) intracavitary brachytherapy planning is an active area of investigation. In this study, we examined whether volume-based HDR-BT (HDR_VOL) plans leads to more conformal plans compared to Point A (HDR_PointA)-based plans.

Material and methods

Two hundred and forty HDR_PointA plans from 48 cervical cancer patients treated with chemoradiotherapy were retrospectively collected. Point A plans were renormalized with respect to the high-risk clinical target volume (HR-CTV) for the HDR_VOL plans. The doses to organs at risk (OAR; rectum, sigmoid, and bladder), and HR-CTV and the conformal index were compared between HDR_PointA and HDR_VOL plans.

Results

HDR_VOL plans resulted in a 6-12% reduction in the total dose (EBRT + HDR-BT) to 0.1 cc, 1.0 cc, and 2.0 cc of the OAR as well as an 8-37% reduction in the dose to 2 cc of OAR per HDR-BT fraction compared to HDR_PointA plans. Differences in the conformal indexes between the two groups of plans showed an 18-31% relative increase per HDR-BT fraction for HDR_VOL plans. The D₉₀ of the HR-CTV was reduced by 11% by HDR_VOL planning and had a median dose of 86 Gy.

Conclusions

Our study reports the relative improvement in OAR doses per HDR-BT fraction by HDR_VOL planning compared to HDR_PointA planning and demonstrates the dosimetric advantages of volume-based HDR-BT planning in creating more conformal plans.

Radiobiological considerations in combining doses from external beam radiotherapy and brachytherapy for cervical cancer

The recommended radio-therapeutic treatment for cervix cancer consists of a first phase of external beam radiotherapy (EBRT) plus a second phase of brachytherapy (BT), the combined treatment being delivered within 8 weeks. In order to assess a comprehensive dosimetry of the whole treatment, it is necessary to take into account that these two phases are characterized by different spatial and temporal dosimetric distributions, which complicates the task of the summation of the two contributions, EBRT and BT. Radiobiology allows to tackle this issue pragmatically by means of the LQ model and, in fact, this is the usual tool currently in use for this matter. In this work, we describe the rationale behind the summation of the dosimetric contributions of the two phases of the treatment, EBRT and BT, for cervix cancer, as carried out with the LQ model. Besides, we address, from a radiobiological point of view, several important considerations regarding the use of the LQ model for this task. One of them is the analysis of the effect of the overall treatment time in the result of the global treatment. Another important question considered is related to the fact that the capacity of LQ to predict the treatment outcomes is deteriorated when the dose per fraction of the radiotherapic scheme exceeds 6-10 Gy, which is a typical brachytherapy fractionation. Finally, we analyze the influence of the uncertainty and the variability of the main parameters utilized in the LQ model formulation in the assessment of the global dosimetry.

Dose accumulation of multiple high dose rate prostate brachytherapy treatments in two commercially available image registration systems

PURPOSE

The purpose of this study was to assess whether deformable image registration (DIR) is required for dose accumulation of multiple high dose rate prostate brachytherapy (HDRPBT) plans treated with the same catheter pattern on two different CT datasets.

METHOD

DIR was applied to 20 HDRPBT patients' planning CT images who received two treatment fractions on sequential days, on two different CT datasets, with the same implant. Quality of DIR in Velocity and MIM image registration systems was assessed by calculating the Dice Similarity Coefficient (DSC) and mean distance to agreement (MDA) for the prostate, urethra and rectum contours. Accumulated doses from each system were then calculated using the same DIR technique and dose volume histogram (DVH) parameters compared to manual addition with no DIR.

RESULTS

The average DSC was found to be 0.83 (Velocity) and 0.84 (MIM), 0.80 (Velocity) and 0.80 (MIM), 0.80 (Velocity) and 0.81 (MIM), for the prostate, rectum and urethra contours, respectively. The average difference in calculated DVH parameters between the two systems using dose accumulation was less than 1%, and there was no statistically significant difference found between deformably accumulated doses in the two systems versus manual DVH addition with no DIR.

CONCLUSION

Contour propagation using DIR in velocity and MIM was shown to be at least equivalent to inter-observer contouring variability on CT. The results also indicate that dose accumulation through manual addition of DVH parameters may be sufficient for HDRPBT treatments treated with the same catheter pattern on two different CT datasets.