Emerging Technologies in Brachytherapy

Introduction

Sources and Loading Technologies

Applicators

Applicator Reconstruction

Dose Calculation

Dose Optimization

Image Processing for Brachytherapy

FMEA for Brachytherapy

Real-Time In Vivo Dosimetry

Quality Assurance Technologies

Additive Manufacturing (3D Printing) in Brachytherapy

Robotics in Brachytherapy

Optical Imaging and Navigation Technologies

Ultrasound

X-Ray and Computed Tomography

Magnetic Resonance Imaging

Positron Emission Tomography

Imaging for Treatment Verification

Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria

University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands

Emerging Technologies in Brachytherapy

Hospital Charles Lemoyne, Montreal, Canada

Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, Canada

Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, Toronto, Canada

Tata Memorial Hospital, Mumbai, India

Institut Joliot-Curie Cancer Center, Dakar, Senegal: Implementing a Brachytherapy Program in a Resource Limited Setting

EBRT or Brachytherapy?

Particle Therapy or Brachytherapy?

Is Brachytherapy Cost Effective?

Elekta Brachytherapy

Eckert & Ziegler BEBIG

Biography

Dr. William Y. Song is the Head of the Department of Medical Physics at the Odette Cancer Centre, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, in Toronto, Canada. This is one of the largest medical physics units in the world with 50+ staff. Along with a busy external beam radiotherapy program, the centre sees close to 600 brachytherapy patients a year, making it the busiest program in Canada. Since joining the centre in 2014, he has been an Associate Professor in the Department of Radiation Oncology, Adjunct Professor in the Institute of Medical Sciences, Institute of Biomaterials and Biomedical Engineering, and Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, at the University of Toronto. He is also an Adjunct Professor in the Department of Physics, at the Ryerson University, Toronto, Canada. He received his PhD degree in 2006 at the University of Western Ontario, London, Canada, on the topic of image guided treatment approaches for prostate cancer. Since then, he has pursued research in the field of image guidance systems, 4D motion management technologies, and brachytherapy, resulting in over 50+ peer-reviewed publications and 130+ conference abstracts. Along the way, he became a fully certified medical physicist (American Board of Radiology, 2010), directly supervised(ing) 20+ MSc and PhD graduate students, an ad hoc reviewer for 20+ research journals, and is a member of the Board of Associate Editors for the Journal of Medical Physics. In brachytherapy particular, his research focus has been in developing novel applicators and MR image processing techniques that enhances plan quality and plan quality evaluations; one in particular, in cleverly designing MR-compatible metal alloys to create non-isotropic dose distributions that can, in combination with inverse planning, gain exceptional dosimetric conformality for use in image guided adaptive brachytherapy.

Dr. Kari Tanderup is Professor at Department of Oncology, Aarhus University H

"Physicians, medical physicists and other members of the brachytherapy team will find this book of value. Beginning with a solid overview of the physics of available radiation sources, brachytherapy applicators, and equipment and planning methods, it looks forward to where these technologies are going and how they might best be applied. Written by international experts, it provides clear authoritative information and practical solutions as to how these methods can be applied in the clinical environment. It includes details of image guided brachytherapy suite designs from around the world, describing how leading centres have incorporated modern advanced imaging into their brachytherapy process. This book is highly readable and provides an authoritative overview of the current state of the art in brachytherapy technologies."
—Gerard Morton MD FRCPC, Associate Professor, Dept of Radiation Oncology, University of Toronto

"Enthusiasm for brachytherapy has waxed and waned over the years with the prevalent popularity of new, external beam approaches. It now stands on the threshold of moving ahead on its own merits. Brachytherapy represents the ultimate radiation therapy, delivering the lowest possible radiation dose to normal tissues, and the highest possible dose to the target. It is now image-guided and quality-assured taking away much of the uncertainty that previously make it so operator dependent. Not only that, it is efficient, limits hospital visits, and is economically smart. These are all attractive features in an era of patient-centered medicine and medical overspending.
This book looks at the many emerging technologies that make brachytherapy more attractive than ever. It is an indispensible guide to both physicists and radiation oncologists who want to take their practice to the next level. Rich as it is in exciting technical detail, it does not fail to also arm brachytherapists with the economic arguments they need to