Design of a Patient-Specific Radiotherapy Treatment Target

This paper describes the design of a patient-specific, radiotherapy quality assurance target that can be used to verify a treatment plan by measurement of actual dosage. Staring from a patient's (segmented) MR images, a physical model containing insertable cartridges for holding dosimeters is printed in 3D. Dosimeters can be located at specific locations of interest (e.g., tumor, nerve bundles, urethra). The model (dosimeter insert) can be placed into a pelvis 'shell' and subject to a specified treatment plan. A design for the dosimeter insert can be efficiently fabricated using rapid prototyping techniques.