PATIENT REGISTRATION SYSTEM FOR RADIATION THERAPY

In radiation oncology, it is important to precisely position patients undergoing radiation therapy repeatably during each session over the course of treatment. Current methods for doing this positioning are time consuming and do not meet the accuracy requirements of advanced 3-D radiation treatment planning. DCS Corporation has developed an innovative high-speed 3-D topographical surface mapping technology ideally suited for biometric applications. DCS proposes to apply this technology to the patient registration problem, developing a system that will map a patient's position prior to, and even during, therapy; calculate differences between the patient's current position and a baseline position taken during an initial planning session; and display this information to the therapy technologist in an optimal format. The basic system can be easily augmented to produce beam blocks and compensators. This Phase I effort will comprise an investigation, design, and simulation. It is preparatory to a Phase II effort during which the system will be constructed and tested in a hospital setting.