A clinically operational method for three-dimensional dose calculations.

Three-dimensional dose calculations can now be performed for both photon and neutron beam therapy in reasonable times on a minicomputer. The method described is a scatter-air ratio-tissue-air ratio (SAR-TAR) model which, for any beam, finds the correct depth at each point in a patient even when the beam passes obliquely through more than one transverse section of the patient. Scatter dose is determined by performing a Clarkson integration over both angle and radial distance, with the correct depth of the beam calculated at both accumulation and scatter points. Doses are computed and displayed over a 0.33 cm sampling grid superimposed on each transverse CT slice used in treatment planning. Dose-volume histograms are made for the entire patient volume and for internal organs and target volumes outlined by the physician. The clinical efficacy of the method in therapy planning is demonstrated and a comparison is made between this method and single section two-dimensional methods.