scholarly journals Monitoring Carbon Ion Beams Transverse Position Detecting Charged Secondary Fragments: Results From Patient Treatment Performed at CNAO

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marco Toppi ◽  
Guido Baroni ◽  
Giuseppe Battistoni ◽  
Maria Giuseppina Bisogni ◽  
Piergiorgio Cerello ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
High Efficiency ◽  
Target Volume ◽  
Particle Therapy ◽  
Patient Treatment ◽  
Technical Solution ◽  
Carbon Ions ◽  
Low Oxygen ◽  
Beam Position ◽  
Charged Secondary ◽  
Transverse Position

Particle therapy in which deep seated tumours are treated using 12C ions (Carbon Ions RadioTherapy or CIRT) exploits the high conformity in the dose release, the high relative biological effectiveness and low oxygen enhancement ratio of such projectiles. The advantages of CIRT are driving a rapid increase in the number of centres that are trying to implement such technique. To fully profit from the ballistic precision achievable in delivering the dose to the target volume an online range verification system would be needed, but currently missing. The 12C ions beams range could only be monitored by looking at the secondary radiation emitted by the primary beam interaction with the patient tissues and no technical solution capable of the needed precision has been adopted in the clinical centres yet. The detection of charged secondary fragments, mainly protons, emitted by the patient is a promising approach, and is currently being explored in clinical trials at CNAO. Charged particles are easy to detect and can be back-tracked to the emission point with high efficiency in an almost background-free environment. These fragments are the product of projectiles fragmentation, and are hence mainly produced along the beam path inside the patient. This experimental signature can be used to monitor the beam position in the plane orthogonal to its flight direction, providing an online feedback to the beam transverse position monitor chambers used in the clinical centres. This information could be used to cross-check, validate and calibrate, whenever needed, the information provided by the ion chambers already implemented in most clinical centres as beam control detectors. In this paper we study the feasibility of such strategy in the clinical routine, analysing the data collected during the clinical trial performed at the CNAO facility on patients treated using 12C ions and monitored using the Dose Profiler (DP) detector developed within the INSIDE project. On the basis of the data collected monitoring three patients, the technique potential and limitations will be discussed.

scholarly journals The Value of SSTR2 Receptor-Targeted PET/CT in Proton Irradiation of Grade I Meningioma

Cancers ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (18) ◽  
pp. 4707
Author(s):  
Maciej J. Pelak ◽  
Birgit Flechl ◽  
Marta Mumot ◽  
Razvan Galalae ◽  
Slavisa Tubin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Tumor Volume ◽  
Radiation Treatment ◽  
Residual Tumor ◽  
Target Volume ◽  
Particle Therapy ◽  
Patient Treatment ◽  
Radiation Treatment Planning ◽  
New Findings ◽  
Pet Ct ◽  
The Impact

Grade I meningioma is the most common intracranial tumor in adults. The standard imaging for its radiation treatment planning is MRI, and [68Ga]1,4,7,10-tetraazacyclododecane-1,4,7,10-tetraacetic acid (DOTA)-conjugated PET/CT can further improve delineation. We investigated the impact of PET/CT on interobserver variability in identifying the tumor in 30 anonymized patients. Four radiation oncologists independently contoured residual tumor volume, first using only MRI and subsequently with the addition of PET/CT. Conformity indices (CIs) were calculated between common volumes, observer pairs and compared to the volumes previously used. Overall, 29/30 tumors (96.6%) showed [68Ga]Ga-DOTA avidity. With help of PET/CT, the participants identified six cases with new lesions not recognized in MRI, including two where new findings would critically alter the target volume used for radiation. The PET/CT-aided series demonstrated superior conformity, as compared to MRI-only between observer pairs (median CI = 0.58 vs. 0.49; p = 0.002), common volumes (CI = 0.34; vs. 0.29; p = 0.002) and matched better the reference volumes actually used for patient treatment (CI = 0.55 vs. 0.39; p = 0.008). Cis in the PET/CT-aided series were lower for meningiomas outside of the skull base (0.2 vs. 0.44; p = 0.03). We conclude that SSTR2 receptor-targeted PET/CT is a valuable tool for planning particle therapy of incompletely resected meningioma. It serves both as a workup procedure and an aid for delineation process that reduces the likelihood of marginal misses.

Drying and heating of scrap metal at steelmaking: industrial safety, economics, ecology

2020 ◽  
Vol 76 (12) ◽  
pp. 1353-1258
Author(s):  
V. A. Spirin ◽  
V. E. Nikol’skii ◽  
D. V. Vokhmintsev ◽  
A. A. Moiseev ◽  
P. G. Smirnov ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Energy Efficiency ◽  
High Efficiency ◽  
Steel Production ◽  
Scrap Metal ◽  
Industrial Safety ◽  
Technical Solution ◽  
Metal Charge ◽  
Basic Task ◽  
Scrap Heating ◽  
Winter Time

At steel production based on scrap metal utilization, the scrap heating before charging into a melting facility is an important way of energy efficiency increase and ecological parameters improving. In winter time scrap metal charging with ice inclusions into a metal melt can result in a considerable damage of equipment and even accidents. Therefore, scrap preliminary drying is necessary to provide industrial safety. It was shown, that in countries with warm and low-snow climate with no risk of scrap metal icing up during its transportation and storing in the open air, the basic task being solved at the scrap drying is an increase of energy efficiency of steelmaking. InRussiathe scrap metal drying first of all provides the safety of the process and next - energy saving. Existing technologies of scrap metal drying and heating considered, as well as advantages and drawbacks of technical solutions used at Russian steel plants. In winter time during scrap metal heating at conveyers (Consteel process) hot gases penetrate not effectively into its mass, the heat is not enough for evaporation of wetness in the metal charge. At scrap heating by the furnace gases, a problem of dioxines emissions elimination arises. Application of shaft heaters results in high efficiency of scrap heating. However, under conditions of Russian winter the upper scrap layers are not always heated higher 0 °С and after getting into a furnace bath the upper scrap layers cause periodical vapor explosions. The shaft heaters create optimal conditions for dioxines formation, which emit into atmosphere. It was shown, that accounting Russian economic and nature conditions, the metal charge drying and heating in modified charging buckets by the heat of burnt natural gas or other additional fuel is optimal. The proposed technical solution enables to burnt off organic impurities ecologically safely, to melt down ice, to evaporate the wetness in the scrap as well as to heat the charge as enough as the charging logistics enables it. The method was implemented at several Russian steel plants. Technical and economical indices of scrap metal drying in buckets under conditions of EAF-based shop, containing two furnaces ДСП-100, presented.

scholarly journals Not all biases are bad: equitable and inequitable biases in machine learning and radiology

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mirjam Pot ◽  
Nathalie Kieusseyan ◽  
Barbara Prainsack
Keyword(s):  
Machine Learning ◽  
Human Error ◽  
Technical Problem ◽  
Social Dimension ◽  
Patient Treatment ◽  
Technical Solution ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Human Decision

AbstractThe application of machine learning (ML) technologies in medicine generally but also in radiology more specifically is hoped to improve clinical processes and the provision of healthcare. A central motivation in this regard is to advance patient treatment by reducing human error and increasing the accuracy of prognosis, diagnosis and therapy decisions. There is, however, also increasing awareness about bias in ML technologies and its potentially harmful consequences. Biases refer to systematic distortions of datasets, algorithms, or human decision making. These systematic distortions are understood to have negative effects on the quality of an outcome in terms of accuracy, fairness, or transparency. But biases are not only a technical problem that requires a technical solution. Because they often also have a social dimension, the ‘distorted’ outcomes they yield often have implications for equity. This paper assesses different types of biases that can emerge within applications of ML in radiology, and discusses in what cases such biases are problematic. Drawing upon theories of equity in healthcare, we argue that while some biases are harmful and should be acted upon, others might be unproblematic and even desirable—exactly because they can contribute to overcome inequities.

scholarly journals When Cells Suffocate: Autophagy in Cancer and Immune Cells under Low Oxygen

2011 ◽  
Vol 2011 ◽  
pp. 1-13 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katrin Schlie ◽  
Jaeline E. Spowart ◽  
Luke R. K. Hughson ◽  
Katelin N. Townsend ◽  
Julian J. Lum
Keyword(s):  
Tumor Microenvironment ◽  
Cancer Cells ◽  
Immune Cells ◽  
Immune Cell ◽  
Treatment Strategies ◽  
Patient Treatment ◽  
Low Oxygen ◽  
Tumor Environment ◽  
And Function ◽  
The Impact

Hypoxia is a signature feature of growing tumors. This cellular state creates an inhospitable condition that impedes the growth and function of all cells within the immediate and surrounding tumor microenvironment. To adapt to hypoxia, cells activate autophagy and undergo a metabolic shift increasing the cellular dependency on anaerobic metabolism. Autophagy upregulation in cancer cells liberates nutrients, decreases the buildup of reactive oxygen species, and aids in the clearance of misfolded proteins. Together, these features impart a survival advantage for cancer cells in the tumor microenvironment. This observation has led to intense research efforts focused on developing autophagy-modulating drugs for cancer patient treatment. However, other cells that infiltrate the tumor environment such as immune cells also encounter hypoxia likely resulting in hypoxia-induced autophagy. In light of the fact that autophagy is crucial for immune cell proliferation as well as their effector functions such as antigen presentation and T cell-mediated killing of tumor cells, anticancer treatment strategies based on autophagy modulation will need to consider the impact of autophagy on the immune system.

Improving the accuracy of forming a digital terrain model along the railway

2021 ◽  
pp. 22-29
Author(s):  
Dmitriy A. Roshchin
Keyword(s):  
High Efficiency ◽  
Digital Terrain Model ◽  
Digital Processing ◽  
Aerial Photographs ◽  
Railway Track ◽  
Technical Solution ◽  
Digital Terrain Models ◽  
Terrain Model ◽  
Digital Terrain ◽  
Terrain Models

The problem of improving the accuracy of digital terrain models created for monitoring and diagnostics of the railway track and the surrounding area is considered. A technical solution to this problem is presented, which includes a method for joint aerial photography and laser scanning, as well as a method for digital processing of the obtained data. The relevance of using this solution is due to the existence of zones of weak reception of signals from the global navigation satellite system, since in these zones the accuracy of constructing digital terrain models using currently used diagnostic spatial scanning systems is reduced. The technical solution is based on the method of digital processing of aerial photographs of the railway track. In this case, as elements of external orientation, the threads of the rail track located at a normalized distance from each other are used. The use of this method made it possible to increase the accuracy of determining the flight path of an aircraft over railway tracks and, as a result, the accuracy of calculating the coordinates of points on the earth's surface. As a result, a digital terrain model was created that is suitable for diagnostics and monitoring the condition of the railway trackbed. During simulation modeling, it was found that the application of the proposed method allowed to reduce to 50 % the confidence interval of the distribution of the error in determining the coordinates of points on the terrain and increase the accuracy of forming a digital terrain model. This promising technical solution for improving the accuracy of digital terrain models for railway track diagnostics is implemented using unmanned aerial vehicles that are part of the mobile diagnostic complex. The advantages of the proposed solution include high efficiency and availability of application.

IMPROVEMENT OF COMPLEX HEAT-RECOVERY SYSTEMS FOR GAS-FIRED BOILER UNITS

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nataliia Fialko ◽  
◽  
Raisa Navrodska ◽  
Georgii Gnedash ◽  
Svitlana Shevchuk ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Heat Recovery ◽  
High Efficiency ◽  
Boiler House ◽  
Technical Solution ◽  
Raw Water ◽  
Water Purification System ◽  
Purification System ◽  
Recovery System ◽  
Boiler Units ◽  
Chemical Water

The calculation and analysis of the complex heat-recovery system for heating by warmth of exhaust-gases from a boiler unit several heattransfer agents for the needs of the boiler house, namely, return heat-network water, combustion air and raw water for chemical water-purification system have been carried out. Results of researches have confirmed high efficiency of the offered technical solution.

scholarly journals Carbon Ion Radiobiology

Cancers ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (10) ◽  
pp. 3022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Walter Tinganelli ◽  
Marco Durante
Keyword(s):  
Normal Tissue ◽  
Biological Response ◽  
Metastatic Potential ◽  
Clinical Results ◽  
Heavy Ion ◽  
Particle Therapy ◽  
X Rays ◽  
Carbon Ions ◽  
Treatment Protocols ◽  
Target Region

Radiotherapy using accelerated charged particles is rapidly growing worldwide. About 85% of the cancer patients receiving particle therapy are irradiated with protons, which have physical advantages compared to X-rays but a similar biological response. In addition to the ballistic advantages, heavy ions present specific radiobiological features that can make them attractive for treating radioresistant, hypoxic tumors. An ideal heavy ion should have lower toxicity in the entrance channel (normal tissue) and be exquisitely effective in the target region (tumor). Carbon ions have been chosen because they represent the best combination in this direction. Normal tissue toxicities and second cancer risk are similar to those observed in conventional radiotherapy. In the target region, they have increased relative biological effectiveness and a reduced oxygen enhancement ratio compared to X-rays. Some radiobiological properties of densely ionizing carbon ions are so distinct from X-rays and protons that they can be considered as a different “drug” in oncology, and may elicit favorable responses such as an increased immune response and reduced angiogenesis and metastatic potential. The radiobiological properties of carbon ions should guide patient selection and treatment protocols to achieve optimal clinical results.

scholarly journals Delivery, Beam and Range Monitoring in Particle Therapy in a Highly Innovative Integrated Design

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. Bottura ◽  
E. Felcini ◽  
V. Ferrero ◽  
E. Fiorina ◽  
V. Monaco ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Treatment Plan ◽  
Integrated Design ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
Target Volume ◽  
Particle Therapy ◽  
Treatment Delivery ◽  
Expected Performance ◽  
Beam Delivery ◽  
Technological Improvements ◽  
System Prototype

The design of a particle therapy system that integrates an innovative beam delivery concept based on a static toroidal gantry and an imaging configuration suitable for beam and online range monitoring is proposed and discussed. Such approach would provide a compact and cost-effective layout, with a highly flexible and fast beam delivery, single particle counting capability for fast measurement of beam fluence and position and a precise real time verification of the compliance between the treatment delivery and its prescription. The gantry configuration is discussed, presenting an analysis of the residual magnetic field in the bore and of the feasibility of irradiating a realistic target volume. Moreover, the expected performance of the PET-based range monitor is assessed through Monte Carlo simulations, showing a precision in the reconstruction of the activity distribution from a clinical treatment plan better than the state-of-the-art devices. The feasibility of the proposed design is then discussed through an assessment of the technological improvements required to actually start the construction and commissioning of a system prototype.

scholarly journals Nanodosimetry-Based Plan Optimization for Particle Therapy

2015 ◽  
Vol 2015 ◽  
pp. 1-13 ◽  
Author(s):  
Margherita Casiraghi ◽  
Reinhard W. Schulte
Keyword(s):  
Treatment Plan ◽  
Target Volume ◽  
Particle Therapy ◽  
Optimization Strategy ◽  
Plan Optimization ◽  
Treatment Plan Optimization ◽  
Treatment Plans ◽  
Mixed Field ◽  
Single Field ◽  
Mixed Radiation Field

Treatment planning for particle therapy is currently an active field of research due uncertainty in how to modify physical dose in order to create a uniform biological dose response in the target. A novel treatment plan optimization strategy based on measurable nanodosimetric quantities rather than biophysical models is proposed in this work. Simplified proton and carbon treatment plans were simulated in a water phantom to investigate the optimization feasibility. Track structures of the mixed radiation field produced at different depths in the target volume were simulated with Geant4-DNA and nanodosimetric descriptors were calculated. The fluences of the treatment field pencil beams were optimized in order to create a mixed field with equal nanodosimetric descriptors at each of the multiple positions in spread-out particle Bragg peaks. For both proton and carbon ion plans, a uniform spatial distribution of nanodosimetric descriptors could be obtained by optimizing opposing-field but not single-field plans. The results obtained indicate that uniform nanodosimetrically weighted plans, which may also be radiobiologically uniform, can be obtained with this approach. Future investigations need to demonstrate that this approach is also feasible for more complicated beam arrangements and that it leads to biologically uniform response in tumor cells and tissues.

scholarly journals Preliminary Design of the Support Structure for a Rotating Carbon-ion Transfer Line for Medical Applications

Instruments ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (4) ◽  
pp. 34
Author(s):  
Diego Perini ◽  
Luca Dassa ◽  
Luca Piacentini ◽  
Stefano Uberti
Keyword(s):  
Superconducting Magnets ◽  
Medical Applications ◽  
Preliminary Design ◽  
Ion Transfer ◽  
Carbon Ions ◽  
Support Structure ◽  
Beam Position ◽  
Carbon Ion ◽  
Transfer Line ◽  
Rotating Structure

The development of new bent superconducting magnets together with the optimization of the support structure open the way to a considerable reduction in the weight and complexity of rotating gantries for medical applications. The magnets, which define the transfer line to deliver carbon ions to the patients from different angles, are supported by a rotating structure that should be as rigid and as lightweight as possible. Relative displacements of the magnets due to deformations cause incorrect beam position and consequent errors in hitting the target tissues. This paper describes a possible rotating structure which is considerably lighter than the previous designs. A method to compensate part of the deformation by complementary rotations of the driving motor is proposed. The influence of the construction tolerances and deformations of the supports is also analyzed and alignment and adjustment possibilities are discussed.

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