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K J Das

Publications and source records attributed to K J Das.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

Partial transmission block for optimization of anterior supraclavicular-posterior axillary boost in the radiation therapy of carcinoma breast.

Radiation therapy of breast often involves an anterior supraclavicular-axillary (SC-AX) portal to irradiate the supraclavicular and axillary contents. However, the fall-off of the dose in this region leads to an inhomogeneity that could result either during the use of a single anterior SC-AX field or even with the concomitant use of a posterior axillary boost. An attempt has been made to circumvent this inhomogeneity by the use of a partial transmission block that could be placed in the anterior SC-AX portal corresponding to the posterior axillary boost field. The details of the quantum of partial transmission block to be used for different axillary separations and the reference depths of the dose prescription has been evaluated and presented.

Axilla↗

Midline shield for radiation therapy of carcinoma of the uterine cervix: should it be "midline" or "individualized".

This study attempts to evaluate the advantage of individualized midline shield (IMLS) constructed on the basis of uterine geometry and applicator position in terms of the dosimetric consequences to points A-right (AR) and left (AL) as compared to standard midline shield (SMLS) in radiation therapy of carcinoma cervix. Twenty consecutive patients of carcinoma cervix (Stage I, II and III) were treated by external beam radiotherapy (EBRT) (50 Gy/5 weeks/25 fractions) and high-dose rate intracavitary brachytherapy (24 Gy/4 weeks/4 fractions) prescribed at point A. At the completion of 40 Gy by EBRT (phase I), IMLS (5 cm wide) at isocenter was fabricated on the basis of uterine geometry as ascertained by a dummy intracavitary application. The remaining 10 Gy of EBRT was delivered using IMLS (phase II) to effectively minimize and optimize the dose to point A. The dose profiles of IMLS were compared against the corresponding dose profile of a 5 cm SMLS and were found to be dependent on the positional variation of AR and AL with respect to the midline. With IMLS, the dose to AR and AL for the 10 Gy of phase II varied between 21.7-38.87% (30.01 +/- 4.87) and 22.42-35.72% (28.12 +/- 3.79) respectively. However with SMLS, the AR and AL doses would have ranged from 22.03% to 77.26% (34.55 +/- 15.94) for AR and from 20.59% to 96.2% (46.93 +/- 28.15) for AL leading to considerable inhomogeneity. Thus, in protocols incorporating midline shield for radiotherapy of carcinoma cervix, IMLS in place of SMLS could be preferred for achieving a definitive and homogeneous dose to the points AR and AL.

Brachytherapy↗

Spatial information on dose distribution using multisectional dose-volume histograms.

Dose-volume histograms are useful tools to summarize the information on the dose profiles resulting within a target volume. However, the spatial relationships of the hot and the cold spots are blunted in the dose-volume histograms. This study tries to circumvent this problem using multisectional dose-volume histograms and highlight the utility of these in the optimization of a radiation therapy plan.

Brachytherapy↗

Multisectional planning for external beam radiotherapy: a "poor person's" alternative to three-dimensional treatment planning.

Recent technical advances in the field of computers have led to the use of three-dimensional dose computation for optimizing a radiation therapy plan. However, in centers which lack such a state-of-the-art technology, one could explore the use of multisectional planning to obtain information about the dose profiles all along the target volume. This article highlights the utility of multisectional planning as an alternative to three-dimensional treatment planning systems for external beam radiation therapy.

Esophageal Neoplasms↗