Towards in vivo dosimetry for contrast enhanced synchrotron stereotactic radiation therapy based on iodine x-ray spectroscopy

The first trial applications of Contrast-Enhanced Synchrotron Stereotactic Radiation Therapy (SSRT) is underway since June 2012 at the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF) in Grenoble (France). The phase I-II clinical trial is designed to test the feasibility and safety of SSRT through a dose escalation protocol. Contrast enhanced radiotherapy achieves localized dose enhancement due to higher photoelectric effect rate in the target. This increase is obtained through the preferential uptake of high-Z media (iodine) in the tumoral area combined with irradiations with medium energy synchrotron x-rays. In vivo dosimetry (i.e. experimental dosimetry in real time during the treatment) would be a serious added value to the project, in terms of online dose monitoring and quality control. It is challenging to perform in vivo dosimetry with the currently available conventional clinical techniques. In this work we investigated a method using x-ray fluorescence detection to derive the iodine concentration contained in a tumor during the treatment of a patient, as a first step towards in vivo dosimetry. A mean iodine concentration of 0.33 ± 0.22 mg/ml has been retrieved in the tumor of the patient compared to 2 mg/ml expected would correspond to 3% local dose enhancement in the tumor. Further work will be performed to improve the attenuation correction method. The expected amount of iodine should be 2 mg/ml in the tumor (20% dose enhancement). This method is suitable to detect iodine in the target but has some problem in quantifying the real amount of iodine present during the irradiation

TG‐69: Radiographic film for megavoltage beam dosimetry

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/134818/1/mp6779.pd

Influence of firm size on the competencies required to management engineers in the Jordanian telecommunications sector

This is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis in European Journal of Engineering Education on [13 jun 2016], available online:http://www.tandfonline.com/ doi/abs/10.1080/03043797.2016.1197890.[EN] The objective of this study is to identify the competencies required to achieve success in the transition from higher education to the labour market based on the perceptions of employers. This paper analyses the assessments made by a group of engineering company employers. An item-battery of 20 competencies was grouped into 3 dimensions by using factor analysis. Subsequently, respondents scores were also clustered into three groups and characterised through contingency tables. The competencies demanded by employers were grouped into business and finance, problem-solving and strategic planning. Significant differences were found between responses from employers working in medium and small companies, who placed more importance on competencies related to problem-solving and strategic planning, and employers in big companies, who were more concerned about the difficulties of finding well-trained graduates. The findings from this paper have important implications for research in the areas of higher education and organisations that usually employ graduate engineers.The authors would like to thank the Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA) [Tempus program. Project number 511074] of the European Commission for providing funding for conducting this study. This publication reflects the views only of the authors, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.Conchado Peiró, A.; Bas Cerdá, MDC.; Gharaibeh, KM.; Kaylani, H. (2016). 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Fractionated stereotactic radiotherapy for skull base tumors: analysis of treatment accuracy using a stereotactic mask fixation system

Background: To assess the accuracy of fractionated stereotactic radiotherapy (FSRT) using a stereotactic mask fixation system. Patients and Methods: Sixteen patients treated with FSRT were involved in the study. A commercial stereotactic mask fixation system (BrainLAB AG) was used for patient immobilization. Serial CT scans obtained before and during FSRT were used to assess the accuracy of patient immobilization by comparing the isocenter position. Daily portal imaging were acquired to establish day to day patient position variation. Displacement errors along the different directions were calculated as combination of systematic and random errors. Results: The mean isocenter displacements based on localization and verification CT imaging were 0.1 mm (SD 0.3 mm) in the lateral direction, 0.1 mm (SD 0.4 mm) in the anteroposterior, and 0.3 mm (SD 0.4 mm) in craniocaudal direction. The mean 3D displacement was 0.5 mm (SD 0.4 mm), being maximum 1.4 mm. No significant differences were found during the treatment (P = 0.4). The overall isocenter displacement as calculated by 456 anterior and lateral portal images were 0.3 mm (SD 0.9 mm) in the mediolateral direction, -0.2 mm (SD 1 mm) in the anteroposterior direction, and 0.2 mm (SD 1.1 mm) in the craniocaudal direction. The largest displacement of 2.7 mm was seen in the cranio-caudal direction, with 95% of displacements < 2 mm in any direction. Conclusions: The results indicate that the setup error of the presented mask system evaluated by CT verification scans and portal imaging are minimal. Reproducibility of the isocenter position is in the best range of positioning reproducibility reported for other stereotactic systems

Synchrotron radiation-based experimental determination of the optimal energy for cell radiotoxicity enhancement following photoelectric effect on stable iodinated compounds

This study was designed to experimentally evaluate the optimal X-ray energy for increasing the radiation energy absorbed in tumours loaded with iodinated compounds, using the photoelectric effect. SQ20B human cells were irradiated with synchrotron monochromatic beam tuned at 32.8, 33.5, 50 and 70 keV. Two cell treatments were compared to the control: cells suspended in 10 mg ml1 of iodine radiological contrast agent or cells pre-exposed with 10 mM of iodo-desoxyuridine (IUdR) for 48 h. Our radiobiological end point was clonogenic cell survival. Cells irradiated with both iodine compounds exhibited a radiation sensitisation enhancement. Moreover, it was energy dependent, with a maximum at 50 keV. At this energy, the sensitisation calculated at 10% survival was equal to 2.03 for cells suspended in iodinated contrast agent and 2.60 for IUdR. Cells pretreated with IUdR had higher sensitisation factors over the energy range than for those suspended in iodine contrast agent. Also, their survival curves presented no shoulder, suggesting complex lethal damages from Auger electrons. Our results confirm the existence of the 50 keV energy optimum for a binary therapeutic irradiation based on the presence of stable iodine in tumours and an external irradiation. Monochromatic synchrotron radiotherapy concept is hence proposed for increasing the differential effect between healthy and cancerous tissue irradiation

Reference Service vs. Work Crews Meeting the Needs of Both During a Collection Shift

In the General Reference and Periodicals Department of the University of Miami, the Abstracts and Index collection had traditionally been arranged alphabetically by title. In 1985 and 1986, all of these serials were cataloged. In June of 1986, with the cataloging finished, it was time to rearrange the collection into call number order. The authors developed a methodology which allowed them to drastically disrupt and rearrange a highly used collection while maintaining high standards of service and accessibility. A collection of over 7,000 volumes was shifted in less than four days with very little manpower and no interruption in reference service. This article takes the reader step-by-step through this methodology