Three-dimensional gamma analysis of dose distributions in individual structures for IMRT dose verification.

Our purpose in this study was to implement three-dimensional (3D) gamma analysis for structures of interest such as the planning target volume (PTV) or clinical target volume (CTV), and organs at risk (OARs) for intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) dose verification. IMRT dose distributions for prostate and head and neck (HN) cancer patients were calculated with an analytical anisotropic algorithm in an Eclipse (Varian Medical Systems) treatment planning system (TPS) and by Monte Carlo (MC) simulation. The MC dose distributions were calculated with EGSnrc/BEAMnrc and DOSXYZnrc user codes under conditions identical to those for the TPS. The prescribed doses were 76 Gy/38 fractions with five-field IMRT for the prostate and 33 Gy/17 fractions with seven-field IMRT for the HN. TPS dose distributions were verified by the gamma passing rates for the whole calculated volume, PTV or CTV, and OARs by use of 3D gamma analysis with reference to MC dose distributions. The acceptance criteria for the 3D gamma analysis were 3/3 and 2 %/2 mm for a dose difference and a distance to agreement. The gamma passing rates in PTV and OARs for the prostate IMRT plan were close to 100 %. For the HN IMRT plan, the passing rates of 2 %/2 mm in CTV and OARs were substantially lower because inhomogeneous tissues such as bone and air in the HN are included in the calculation area. 3D gamma analysis for individual structures is useful for IMRT dose verification.