US 12,168,146 B2
System, method and computer program for determining a radiation therapy plan for a radiation therapy system
Harald Sepp Heese, Hamburg (DE); Torbjoern Vik, Hamburg (DE); and Rolf Jürgen Weese, Norderstedt (DE)
Assigned to Elekta Inc., Atlanta, GA (US)
Appl. No. 17/780,507
Filed by Elekta Inc., Atlanta, GA (US)
PCT Filed Nov. 25, 2020, PCT No. PCT/EP2020/083266
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date May 26, 2022,
PCT Pub. No. WO2021/110495, PCT Pub. Date Jun. 10, 2021.
Claims priority of application No. 19212897 (EP), filed on Dec. 2, 2019.
Prior Publication US 2023/0001236 A1, Jan. 5, 2023
Int. Cl. A61N 5/10 (2006.01)
CPC A61N 5/1036 (2013.01) [A61N 5/1031 (2013.01); A61N 5/1045 (2013.01)] 20 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A Radiation therapy plan determination system for determining a radiation therapy plan for a radiation therapy system comprising a multi-leaf collimator (MLC), wherein the MLC comprises a plurality of moveable leaves for shaping an aperture of the MLC such that a radiation beam is shaped by the aperture before being provided to a patient, and wherein the radiation therapy plan determination system comprises:
a therapy system characteristics providing unit for providing multiple characteristics of the radiation therapy system, wherein the multiple characteristics comprise possible leaf positions defining possible apertures of the MLC and possible radiation fluence values that are providable by the radiation therapy system;
a planning objectives providing unit providing one or more planning objectives, wherein the one or more planning objectives are indicative of a desired therapeutic radiation dose distribution that should be provided to the patient;
an optimization function providing unit for providing an optimization function, wherein the optimization function is indicative of a deviation of a radiation dose distribution from the one or more planning objectives, wherein the radiation dose distribution depends on a sequence of possible apertures defined by the possible leaf positions and possible radiation fluence values, and wherein the optimization function is further indicative of an uncertainty of the radiation dose distribution at edges of the possible apertures; and
a therapy plan optimization unit for determining an optimized therapy plan, wherein the therapy plan optimization unit is adapted to determine the sequence of possible apertures and the possible radiation fluence values for which the optimization function is optimized, and wherein the sequence of optimized possible apertures and the optimized possible radiation fluence values defines the optimized therapy plan.