Inter- and intra-scanner variations in four magnetic resonance imaging image quality parameters

Peer reviewe

Development of quality standards for multi-center, longitudinal magnetic resonance imaging studies in clinical neuroscience

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data is generated by a complex procedure. Many possible sources of error exist which can lead to a worse signal. For example, hidden defective components of a MRI-scanner, changes in the static magnetic field caused by a person simply moving in the MRI scanner room as well as changes in the measurement sequences can negatively affect the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). A comprehensive, reproducible, quality assurance (QA) procedure is necessary, to ensure reproducible results both from the MRI equipment and the human operator of the equipment. To examine the quality of the MRI data, there are two possibilities. On the one hand, water or gel-filled objects, so-called "phantoms", are regularly measured. Based on this signal, which in the best case should always be stable, the general performance of the MRI scanner can be tested. On the other hand, the actually interesting data, mostly human data, are checked directly for certain signal parameters (e.g., SNR, motion parameters). This thesis consists of two parts. In the first part a study-specific QA-protocol was developed for a large multicenter MRI-study, FOR2107. The aim of FOR2107 is to investigate the causes and course of affective disorders, unipolar depression and bipolar disorders, taking clinical and neurobiological effects into account. The main aspect of FOR2107 is the MRI-measurement of more than 2000 subjects in a longitudinal design (currently repeated measurements after 2 years, further measurements planned after 5 years). To bring MRI-data and disease history together, MRI-data must provide stable results over the course of the study. Ensuring this stability is dealt with in this part of the work. An extensive QA, based on phantom measurements, human data analysis, protocol compliance testing, etc., was set up. In addition to the development of parameters for the characterization of MRI-data, the used QA-protocols were improved during the study. The differences between sites and the impact of these differences on human data analysis were analyzed. The comprehensive quality assurance for the FOR2107 study showed significant differences in MRI-signal (for human and phantom data) between the centers. Occurring problems could easily be recognized in time and be corrected, and must be included for current and future analyses of human data. For the second part of this thesis, a QA-protocol (and the freely available associated software "LAB-QA2GO") has been developed and tested, and can be used for individual studies or to control the quality of an MRI-scanner. This routine was developed because at many sites and in many studies, no explicit QA is performed nevertheless suitable, freely available QA-software for MRI-measurements is available. With LAB-QA2GO, it is possible to set up a QA-protocol for an MRI-scanner or a study without much effort and IT knowledge. Both parts of the thesis deal with the implementation of QA-procedures. High quality data and study results can be achieved only by the usage of appropriate QA-procedures, as presented in this work. Therefore, QA-measures should be implemented at all levels of a project and should be implemented permanently in project and evaluation routines

Medical physics challenges in clinical MR-guided radiotherapy

The integration of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for guidance in external beam radiotherapy has faced significant research and development efforts in recent years. The current availability of linear accelerators with an embedded MRI unit, providing volumetric imaging at excellent soft tissue contrast, is expected to provide novel possibilities in the implementation of image-guided adaptive radiotherapy (IGART) protocols. This study reviews open medical physics issues in MR-guided radiotherapy (MRgRT) implementation, with a focus on current approaches and on the potential for innovation in IGART.Daily imaging in MRgRT provides the ability to visualize the static anatomy, to capture internal tumor motion and to extract quantitative image features for treatment verification and monitoring. Those capabilities enable the use of treatment adaptation, with potential benefits in terms of personalized medicine. The use of online MRI requires dedicated efforts to perform accurate dose measurements and calculations, due to the presence of magnetic fields. Likewise, MRgRT requires dedicated quality assurance (QA) protocols for safe clinical implementation.Reaction to anatomical changes in MRgRT, as visualized on daily images, demands for treatment adaptation concepts, with stringent requirements in terms of fast and accurate validation before the treatment fraction can be delivered. This entails specific challenges in terms of treatment workflow optimization, QA, and verification of the expected delivered dose while the patient is in treatment position. Those challenges require specialized medical physics developments towards the aim of fully exploiting MRI capabilities. Conversely, the use of MRgRT allows for higher confidence in tumor targeting and organs-at-risk (OAR) sparing.The systematic use of MRgRT brings the possibility of leveraging IGART methods for the optimization of tumor targeting and quantitative treatment verification. Although several challenges exist, the intrinsic benefits of MRgRT will provide a deeper understanding of dose delivery effects on an individual basis, with the potential for further treatment personalization

The Use of MR-Guided Radiation Therapy for Head and Neck Cancer and Recommended Reporting Guidance

Although magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has become standard diagnostic workup for head and neck malignancies and is currently recommended by most radiological societies for pharyngeal and oral carcinomas, its utilization in radiotherapy has been heterogeneous during the last decades. However, few would argue that implementing MRI for annotation of target volumes and organs at risk provides several advantages, so that implementation of the modality for this purpose is widely accepted. Today, the term MR-guidance has received a much broader meaning, including MRI for adaptive treatments, MR-gating and tracking during radiotherapy application, MR-features as biomarkers and finally MR-only workflows. First studies on treatment of head and neck cancer on commercially available dedicated hybrid-platforms (MR-linacs), with distinct common features but also differences amongst them, have also been recently reported, as well as "biological adaptation" based on evaluation of early treatment response via functional MRI-sequences such as diffusion weighted ones. Yet, all of these approaches towards head and neck treatment remain at their infancy, especially when compared to other radiotherapy indications. Moreover, the lack of standardization for reporting MR-guided radiotherapy is a major obstacle both to further progress in the field and to conduct and compare clinical trials. Goals of this article is to present and explain all different aspects of MR-guidance for radiotherapy of head and neck cancer, summarize evidence, as well as possible advantages and challenges of the method and finally provide a comprehensive reporting guidance for use in clinical routine and trials

Improving Radiotherapy Targeting for Cancer Treatment Through Space and Time

Radiotherapy is a common medical treatment in which lethal doses of ionizing radiation are preferentially delivered to cancerous tumors. In external beam radiotherapy, radiation is delivered by a remote source which sits several feet from the patient\u27s surface. Although great effort is taken in properly aligning the target to the path of the radiation beam, positional uncertainties and other errors can compromise targeting accuracy. Such errors can lead to a failure in treating the target, and inflict significant toxicity to healthy tissues which are inadvertently exposed high radiation doses. Tracking the movement of targeted anatomy between and during treatment fractions provides valuable localization information that allows for the reduction of these positional uncertainties. Inter- and intra-fraction anatomical localization data not only allows for more accurate treatment setup, but also potentially allows for 1) retrospective treatment evaluation, 2) margin reduction and modification of the dose distribution to accommodate daily anatomical changes (called `adaptive radiotherapy\u27), and 3) targeting interventions during treatment (for example, suspending radiation delivery while the target it outside the path of the beam). The research presented here investigates the use of inter- and intra-fraction localization technologies to improve radiotherapy to targets through enhanced spatial and temporal accuracy. These technologies provide significant advancements in cancer treatment compared to standard clinical technologies. Furthermore, work is presented for the use of localization data acquired from these technologies in adaptive treatment planning, an investigational technique in which the distribution of planned dose is modified during the course of treatment based on biological and/or geometrical changes of the patient\u27s anatomy. The focus of this research is directed at abdominal sites, which has historically been central to the problem of motion management in radiation therapy

FMEA of MR-Only Treatment Planning in the Pelvis

Purpose: To evaluate the implementation of a magnetic resonance (MR)-only workflow (ie, implementing MR simulation as the primary planning modality) using failure mode and effects analysis (FMEA) in comparison with a conventional multimodality (MR simulation in conjunction with computed tomography simulation) workflow for pelvis external beam planning. Methods and Materials: To perform the FMEA, a multidisciplinary 9-member team was assembled and developed process maps, identified potential failure modes (FMs), and assigned numerical values to the severity (S), frequency of occurrence (O), and detectability (D) of those FMs. Risk priority numbers (RPNs) were calculated via the product of S, O, and D as a metric for evaluating relative patient risk. An alternative 3-digit composite number (SOD) was computed to emphasize high-severity FMs. Fault tree analysis identified the causality chain leading to the highest-severity FM. Results: Seven processes were identified, 3 of which were shared between workflows. Image fusion and target delineation subprocesses using the conventional workflow added 9 and 10 FMs, respectively, with 6 RPNs \u3e100. By contrast, synthetic computed tomography generation introduced 3 major subprocesses and propagated 46 unique FMs, 15 with RPNs \u3e100. For the conventional workflow, the largest RPN scores were introduced by image fusion (RPN range, 120-192). For the MR-only workflow, the highest RPN scores were from inaccuracies in target delineation resulting from misinterpretation of MR images (RPN = 240) and insufficient management of patient- and system-level distortions (RPN = 210 and 168, respectively). Underestimation (RPN = 140) or overestimation (RPN = 192) of bone volume produced higher RPN scores. The highest SODs for both workflows were related to changes in target location because of internal anatomy changes (conventional = 961, MR-only = 822). Conclusions: FMEA identified areas for mitigating risk in MR-only pelvis RTP, and SODs identified high-severity process modes. Efforts to develop a quality management program to mitigate high FMs are underway

Magneettikuvaukseen perustuvan sädehoidon suunnittelun käyttöönotto lantion alueella

Modern radiation therapy delivery techniques enable ever conformal delivery of the radiation increasing the likelihood for successful treatment and reducing complications in nearby healthy tissue. In order to improve the treatment outcomes, in addition to advanced radiation delivery techniques, more accurate knowledge about the location and spread of both disease and organs at risk (OAR) is needed. Thus, the use of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has increased substantially during recent years. In MRI, the contrast resolution for soft tissue is superior compared to other imaging modalities enabling precise target definition and contouring of the OARs. Currently, the use of MRI in radiation therapy is based on co-registration of the images facilitating the use of the information provided by MRI while computed tomography (CT) is used for dose computation and as a reference image for patient positioning. Unfortunately, the dual modality workflow is laborious and cost inefficient. In addition, the co-registration uncertainty propagates to treatment uncertainty causing systematic error. During recent years several research groups have published methods enabling the generation of so-called synthetic CT (sCT). It can be used like traditional CT for density information in dose computation and as positioning reference images. The use of sCT enables external beam radiation therapy workflow using only MR imaging. In this work we studied the commissioning and accuracy of MRI-only workflow for external beam radiation therapy (EBRT) of pelvic malignancies. The commissioning test shall cover all steps in the radiation therapy workflow where geometric or dosimetric accuracy is affected by the substitution of the CT by the sCT. In publications I and III, we assessed the dosimetric accuracy of sCT images in pelvis by comparing to dose distributions computed using CT images. In publications II and III, we studied the patient positioning accuracy when sCT images are used as reference images. In addition, in publications I and III we evaluated the impact of geometric distortions to the total accuracy of MRI-only workflow. According to our results, the use of studied sCT method is sufficiently accurate for clinical use for pelvic indications. In addition, image-guided radiation therapy based on MR images is accurate enough so that the total geometric accuracy improves compared to current CT based work-flow.Modernit sädehoitotekniikat mahdollistavat yhä tarkemman kohteenmukaisen sädehoidon antamisen, mikä lisää hoidon onnistumisen todennäköisyyttä ja vähentää komplikaatioita ympäröivissä terveissä kudoksissa. Parempiin hoitotuloksiin pääsemiseksi sädehoidossa tarvitaan kuitenkin, kehittyneiden hoitotekniikoiden lisäksi, yhä tarkempaa tietoa hoitokohteen ja riskielinten sijainnista. Tämän takia ionisoimattoman säteilyn käyttöön perustuvan magneettikuvauksen (MK) käyttö on lisääntynyt voimakkaasti sädehoidossa viime vuosina. MK:ssa pehmytkudosten välinen kontrasti on muita kuvausmodaliteetteja parempi, mikä mahdollistaa tarkemman kohteen määrittelyn ja riskielinten rajauksen. Nykyinen käytäntö MK-kuvien osalta sädehoidossa perustuu tietokonetomografia- (TT) ja MK-kuvien rekisteröintiin, jolloin MK-kuvien antama lisäinformaatio voidaan hyödyntää, vaikka itse hoitokenttien annoslaskenta ja potilaan kohdistus on TT-kuviin perustuvaa. Kahden kuvausmoda-liteetin käytöstä aiheutuu ylimääräistä työtä ja kustannuksia. Lisäksi kuvien rekisteröintiin liittyvä virhe lisää epävarmuutta hoidon tarkkuudessa. Viime aikoina useat tutkimusryhmät ovat julkaisseet menetelmiä, joiden avulla on mahdollista muodostaa sädehoidon annoslaskennassa tarvittava tiheyskartta (laskennallinen TT-kuva) suoraan magneettikuvausta käyttäen. Näin sädehoito on mahdollista toteuttaa pelkän magneettikuvan perusteella, jolloin yllä mainitut kahden kuvausmodaliteetin käytöstä aiheutuvat ongelmat voidaan välttää. Tässä työssä tutkittiin MK-kuviin perustuvan laskennallisen TT-kuvan käyttöönottoa ja tarkkuutta lantion alueen ulkoisessa sädehoidossa. Käyttöönottotestien tulee kattaa kaikki sellaiset vaiheet, jossa MK-pohjainen suunnittelu vaikuttaa joko geometriseen tai dosimetriseen tarkkuuteen. Ensimmäisessä ja kolmannessa osatyössä tutkittiin mahdollisuutta käyttää MK:ta sädehoitopotilaiden lantion alueen annoslaskennassa säteilyn vaimennuskorjaukseen. Toisessa ja kolmannessa osatyössä määritettiin potilasasemoinnin epätarkkuus käytettäessä MK-pohjaista menetelmää vertaamalla perinteiseen TT-kuvaan pohjautuvaan menetelmään. Lisäksi ensimmäisessä ja kolmannessa osatyössä arvioitiin MK:n geometrisen vääristymän vaikutuksia kokonaistarkkuuteen. Tutkimuksen perusteella menetelmän käyttö lantion alueella on riittävän tarkka kliiniseen käyttöön. Lisäksi kuvantaohjattu sädehoito magneettikuvien pohjalta on riittävän tarkkaa, jotta potilaan asemointitarkkuus ei huonone suhteessa nykyiseen TT-pohjaiseen suunnitteluun

Adaptive Radiation Therapy (ART) Strategies and Technical Considerations: A State of the ART Review From NRG Oncology

The integration of adaptive radiation therapy (ART), or modifying the treatment plan during the treatment course, is becoming more widely available in clinical practice. ART offers strong potential for minimizing treatment-related toxicity while escalating or de-escalating target doses based on the dose to organs at risk. Yet, ART workflows add complexity into the radiation therapy planning and delivery process that may introduce additional uncertainties. This work sought to review presently available ART workflows and technological considerations such as image quality, deformable image registration, and dose accumulation. Quality assurance considerations for ART components and minimum recommendations are described. Personnel and workflow efficiency recommendations are provided, as is a summary of currently available clinical evidence supporting the implementation of ART. Finally, to guide future clinical trial protocols, an example ART physician directive and a physics template following standard NRG Oncology protocol is provided