Journal article
Range-compensated pencil beam scanning proton Arc therapy: a feasibility study
Communications engineering, Vol.4(1), 139
07/31/2025
DOI: 10.1038/s44172-025-00460-z
PMCID: PMC12313954
PMID: 40745021
Abstract
Proton arc therapy is a conceptual treatment technique in proton therapy that delivers a scanned proton pencil beam simultaneously as the gantry is rotated around the patient, exploiting the geometric advantages of a continuous arc with the dosimetric advantages of protons to maximize healthy tissue sparing. Here we propose an alternative approach to deliver pencil beam scanning (PBS) proton arc therapy using a beam-modifying device called a SpeleoFilter. SpeleoFilters can improve the treatment efficiency of proton arc by reducing the number of beam energies and beam spots while preserving the plan quality as compared to traditional multifield intensity modulated proton therapy (IMPT). The proposed SpeleoFilter framework was validated within a state-of-the art PBS collimator and IBA Dedicated Nozzle PBS system at the Miami Cancer Institute. The Monte Carlo methods developed in this work showed great agreement with experimental measurements and matched depth dose profiles within a 1–2%/1 mm gamma criteria. Proton arc treatments utilizing a SpeoleFilter resulted in comparable healthy tissue sparing and an order-of-magnitude reduction in the number of energy layers compared to IMPT for both phantom and patient datasets. Further work is necessary to fully demonstrate its application and clinical integration for multiple treatment sites.
Blake Smith and colleagues propose an innovative approach to pencil beam scanning proton arc radiotherapy using customized range compensators. These devices were optimized to omit energy changes while improving treatment deliverability and efficiency.
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- Range-compensated pencil beam scanning proton Arc therapy: a feasibility study
- Creators
- Blake R. Smith - University of Iowa Health CareRyan T. Flynn - University of IowaAlonso N. Gutiérrez - Baptist Health South FloridaDaniel E. Hyer - University of Iowa Health Care
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Publication Details
- Communications engineering, Vol.4(1), 139
- DOI
- 10.1038/s44172-025-00460-z
- PMID
- 40745021
- PMCID
- PMC12313954
- NLM abbreviation
- Commun Eng
- ISSN
- 2731-3395
- eISSN
- 2731-3395
- Publisher
- Nature Publishing Group UK
- Grant note
- R37CA226518 / U.S. Department of Health & Human Services | National Institutes of Health (NIH) (https://doi.org/10.13039/100000002)
- Language
- English
- Date published
- 07/31/2025
- Academic Unit
- Roy J. Carver Department of Biomedical Engineering; Radiation Oncology
- Record Identifier
- 9984927080002771
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