A Feasibility Study of IMRT (Intensity Modulated Radiotherapy) Modulation to Account for Scattered Radiation From Dental Fillings in Head and Neck Cancer Patients
A Feasibility Study of IMRT (Intensity Modulated Radiotherapy) Modulation to Account for Scattered Radiation From Dental Fillings in Head and Neck Cancer Patients
The main objective of this study is to determine the feasibility of optimizing the IMRT treatment plan based on dosimeter measurements of mucosal radiation dose adjacent to the dental fillings to reduce such dose to < 35 Gy without compromising tumor coverage and/or increasing the dose to the remaining oral cavity or nearby parotid glands.
Using radiation dosimeter, we will perform measurement of the doses received by the mucosa adjacent to the dental fillings in patients receiving IMRT for head and neck cancer. If the mucosa dose is estimated to be greater than 35 Gy for the entire radiation course, we will generate and implement a "filling" optimized IMRT plan, provided that this new plan does not compromise tumor coverage or increase dose to the rest of the oral mucosa or parotid glands. Dosimeter will be used to measure the mucosal dose delivered by this new IMRT plan. Patient's mucositis grade, narcotic use and self-reported mouth and throat soreness scores will be recorded and correlated to mucosal dose. We hypothesize that modulation of an IMRT plan to reduce the dose delivered to adjacent normal mucosa surrounding the dental filling can decrease the severity and duration of radiation-related oral mucositis. Here we propose to use thermoluminescent dosimeter (TLD) to measure the mucosal dose adjacent to the dental fillings in a standard, "non-filling" optimized IMRT plan that is normally delivered in the clinic.
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