P-ISSN 2587-2400 | E-ISSN 2587-196X
EJMO. 2018; 2(2): 73-78 | DOI: 10.14744/ejmo.2017.92400

Accuracy of a Novel Head and Neck Phantom for Heterogeneous Media Verification Using an Irregular Field Algorithm

Michael Onoriode Akpochafor1, Akintayo Daniel Omojola2, Muhammad Yaqub Habeebu1, Samuel Olaolu Adeneye1, Moses Adebayo Aweda1, Chieloka Chinazom Iloputaife1, Temitope Aminat Orotoye1, Abayomi Emmanuel Opadele1
1Department of Radiation Biology, Radiotherapy, Radiodiagnosis and Radiography, Lagos University Teaching Hospital, Faculty of Medicine, Idi-Araba, Lagos, Nigeria, 2Department of Radiology, Medical Physics Unit, Federal Medical Centre Asaba, Delta State, Nigeria,

Objectives: The treatment outcome in patients can be improved with a fast and accurate treatment planning system (TPS) algorithm. The aim of this study was to design a novel head and neck phantom and to use it to test whether the accuracy of the irregular field algorithm of the Precise Plan 2.16 (Elekta Instrument AB, Stockholm, Sweden) TPS was within ±5% of the International Commission on Radiation Units and Measurements (ICRU) limit for homogenous and inhomogeneous media by rotating the Elekta Precise linear accelerator gantry angle using 2 fields. Methods: A locally designed acrylic phantom was constructed in the shape of a block with 5 inserts. Acquisition of images was performed using a HiSpeed NX/i computed tomography scanner (GE Healthcare, Inc. Chicago, IL, USA); the Precise Plan 2.16 TPS was used to determine the beam application setup parameters and an Elekta Precise linear accelerator was used for radiation dose delivery. A pre-calibrated NE 2570/1 Farmer-type ion chamber with an electrometer was used to measure the dose. The mimicked organs were the brain, temporal bone, trachea, and skull. Results: The maximum percentage deviation for 10×10 cm and 5×5 cm inhomogeneous inserts was 1.62 and 4.6, respectively, at a gantry angle of 180°, and that of the 10×10 cm homogeneous insert was 3.41 at a gantry angle of 270°. The percentage deviation for only the bone insert (homogeneous) and for all inserts (inhomogeneous) using parallel opposed beams was 2.89 and 2.07, respectively. Also, the percentage deviation between the locally designed head and neck phantom and the solid water phantom of the linear accelerator was 0.3%. Conclusion: The validation result of our novel phantom in comparison with the solid water phantom was good. The maximum percentage deviations were below the ICRU limit of ±5%, irrespective of gantry angles and field sizes.


Cite This Article

Akpochafor M, Omojola A, Habeebu M, Adeneye S, Aweda M, Iloputaife C, et al. Accuracy of a Novel Head and Neck Phantom for Heterogeneous Media Verification Using an Irregular Field Algorithm. EJMO. 2018; 2(2): 73-78

Corresponding Author: Akintayo Daniel Omojola

Full Text PDF PDF Download
EJMO & EJMO