Near simultaneous computed tomography image-guided stereotactic radiotherapy

1 . A targeting system for administering radiation to a patient comprising:

a stereotactic frame system for immobilizing the patient;

an imaging scanner for acquiring images of a patient's anatomy, wherein at least one image is acquired during a planning phase, and at least one image is acquired during a pretreatment phase;

a processor for fusing the planning image to the pretreatment image and for determining a shift between the images to locate a predetermined portion of the patient's anatomy; and

a radiation source for delivery of radiation to the predetermined portion of the patient's anatomy.

2 . The targeting system of claim 1 , wherein the stereotactic frame system is a body frame system including:

a base plate for supporting the patient;

a whole body vacuum cushion and fixation sheet for securing the patient in a predetermined position; and

a vacuum for removing air from the cushion and between the cushion and fixation sheet to fix the patient in the predetermined position.

3 . The targeting system of claim 1 , wherein the stereotactic frame system includes a stereotactic localizer for determining a position of the patient's anatomy relative to the radiation source.

4 . The targeting system of claim 1 , wherein the stereotactic frame system includes a target positioning frame for positioning the radiation source to deliver radiation to the predetermined portion of the patient's anatomy.

5 . The targeting system of claim 1 , wherein the stereotactic frame system is rotatable about a first axis and slidable about a second axis.

6 . The targeting system of claim 1 , wherein the stereotactic frame system is movable from a scanning position to a treatment position while the patient is immobilized.

7 . The targeting system of claim 1 , wherein the radiation source is a linear accelerator.

8 . The targeting system of claim 1 , wherein the imaging scanner is a computed tomography (CT) scanner.

9 . The targeting system of claim 1 , wherein the imaging scanner is a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanner.

10 . A method for administering radiation to a patient, the method comprising the steps of:

obtaining a first image of a predetermined portion of the patient's anatomy during a planning phase of a treatment procedure;

obtaining a second image of the predetermined portion of the patient's anatomy during a pretreatment phase of the treatment procedure;

fusing the first image to the second image to align the first and second images;

determining a shift to align the first and second images; and

calculating an isocenter of the patient's anatomy in the second image using the first image and the determined shift.

11 . The method of claim 10 , further comprising the step of delivering radiation to the calculated isocenter.

12 . The method of claim 10 , wherein the determining a shift step includes calculating a translation of at least one of the first and second images in three dimensions.

13 . The method of claim 10 , wherein the determining a shift step includes calculating a rotation of at least one of the first and second images in one dimension.

14 . The method of claim 10 , wherein the fusing step includes selecting a plurality of landmarks in the first image and selecting identical landmarks in the second image and aligning the selected landmarks of the first and second images.

15 . The method of claim 14 , wherein the selecting of the plurality of landmarks step is performed by image detection software.

16 . The method of claim 14 , wherein the fusing step further includes fusing each voxel of the first image to each voxel of the second image after the selected landmarks are aligned.

17 . The method of claim 10 , further comprising the steps of:

determining stereotactic coordinates of the isocenter in relation to a immobilization device affixed to the patient.

18 . A program storage device readable by machine, tangibly embodying a program of instructions executable by the machine to perform method steps for determining a target volume in a patient, the method steps comprising:

obtaining a first image of a predetermined portion of the patient's anatomy during a planning phase of a treatment procedure;

obtaining a second image of the predetermined portion of the patient's anatomy during a pretreatment phase of the treatment procedure;

fusing the first image to the second image to align the first and second images;

determining a shift to align the first and second images; and

calculating an isocenter of the target volume of the patient in the second image using the first image and the determined shift.

19 . The program storage device of claim 18 , wherein the determining a shift step includes calculating a translation of at least one of the first and second images in three dimensions.

20 . The program storage device of claim 18 , wherein the determining a shift step includes calculating a rotation of at least one of the first and second images in one dimension.

21 . The program storage device of claim 18 , wherein the fusing step includes selecting a plurality of landmarks in the first image and selecting identical landmarks in the second image and aligning the selected landmarks of the first and second images.

22 . The program storage device of claim 21 , wherein the selecting of the plurality of landmarks step is performed by image detection software.

23 . The program storage device of claim 21 , wherein the fusing step further includes fusing each voxel of the first image to each voxel of the second image after the selected landmarks are aligned.

24 . The program storage device of claim 18 , further comprising the step determining stereotactic coordinates of the isocenter in relative to a fixed point of the patient.