JP2011194066A - Particle beam therapy scheduling system and scheduling method of the same - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To plan a schedule for a particle beam therapy in high reliability.SOLUTION: A particle beam therapy scheduling system determined and indicated as a therapy room schedule for the particle beam therapy, includes: storage means 3 for memorizing information giving an indication of positioning frequency of an individual patient and an irradiation time per day; estimation means 6 for a therapy room used hours being an amount of time for the therapy room to be used by an individual patient by a positioning time multiplying the positioning frequency and an amount of time required for positioning once and then adding the irradiation time per day to the positioning time; and therapy room schedule planning means 8 for planning a therapy room schedule using the therapy room used hours.

Description

  The present invention relates to a particle beam therapy scheduling system and a scheduling method thereof.

  In particle beam therapy, a treatment irradiation device (accelerator) such as a synchrotron that accelerates protons and heavy particle ions is used. The facilities are streamlined by sharing a single accelerator among multiple treatment rooms.

  In particle beam therapy, so that treatment irradiation can be performed in as many treatment rooms as possible during operation of the accelerator, which is a common device, and as many patients as possible can be assigned to each treatment room. It is important to develop an efficient treatment room schedule.

  This treatment room schedule is intended for a variety of patients whose irradiation time (treatment room occupation time) varies depending on treatment contents. For example, patients who use the first treatment room on a certain day are patients A and B. , And patient C, and the order of irradiation is patient B → patient A → patient C. The patients who use the second treatment room on that day are patient D, patient E, and patient F, and the irradiation order is created as a treatment room use plan such as patient F → patient E → patient D. .

  Conventionally, a particle beam therapy scheduling system has been proposed that makes a treatment room schedule based on a comprehensive automatic consideration of accelerator operation conditions, treatment room operation conditions, days when patients cannot visit due to various circumstances, and patient treatment plans. (See Patent Document 1).

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-253565

  The treatment room schedule designed by the conventional particle beam treatment scheduling system tends to deviate greatly from the actual treatment progress, and the reliability of the treatment room schedule is not sufficient.

  The difference between the treatment room schedule and the actual treatment progress is inconvenient for both the patient and the staff, because the characteristics of the accelerator shared by multiple treatment rooms cannot be changed according to the schedule and other treatment rooms cannot be used. That is.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a particle beam therapy scheduling system and a scheduling method thereof capable of planning a highly reliable treatment room schedule.

  In order to achieve the above-described object, in the particle beam therapy scheduling system according to the present invention, in the particle beam therapy scheduling system for planning a treatment room schedule of particle beam therapy, information serving as an index of the number of times of positioning for each patient and per day The storage means for storing the irradiation time, the positioning time is calculated by multiplying the number of positioning times by the required time per positioning, and the time obtained by adding the positioning time to the irradiation time per day is used in the treatment room per patient. A treatment room usage time estimating means for making a time, and a treatment room schedule planning means for making a treatment room schedule using the treatment room usage time are provided.

  In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, in the particle beam therapy scheduling method according to the present invention, in the particle beam therapy scheduling method for planning a treatment room schedule for particle beam therapy, positioning is performed from information serving as an index of the number of times of individual patient positioning. The number of times is extracted, the positioning time is calculated by multiplying the number of times of positioning by the required time per positioning, and the time obtained by adding the positioning time to the irradiation time per day is estimated as the treatment room usage time per patient. The treatment room schedule is planned using the treatment room usage time.

  According to the present invention, a highly reliable treatment room schedule can be planned.

The functional block diagram which shows 1st Embodiment of the particle beam therapy scheduling system which concerns on this invention. The figure which shows the treatment plan memorize | stored in the memory | storage means of FIG. The figure which shows the planning conditions memorize | stored in the memory | storage means of FIG. The functional block diagram which shows 2nd Embodiment of the particle beam therapy scheduling system which concerns on this invention. The functional block diagram which shows 3rd Embodiment of the particle beam therapy scheduling system which concerns on this invention.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram showing a first embodiment of a particle beam therapy scheduling system according to the present invention.

  The particle beam therapy scheduling system 1 according to the present embodiment is configured such that when a particle beam therapy apparatus such as an accelerator is shared by a plurality of therapy rooms, the patients assigned to each therapy room in the day and the order thereof are treated as a therapy room schedule. It is a system that decides and presents.

  The particle beam therapy scheduling system 1 is configured using a general-purpose computer system, and includes an input unit 2, a storage unit 3, a positioning number extraction unit 4, an irradiation time extraction unit 5, a treatment room usage time estimation unit 6, and a treatment room. The use time storage means 7, treatment room schedule planning means 8, data management means 9, and display means 10 are the main components.

  The input unit 2 includes an operation device such as a keyboard and a mouse, and is used when various kinds of information are stored in the storage unit 3 according to a user request.

  The storage means 3 stores patient information, treatment plan, accelerator operation information, treatment room operation information, and planning condition information in an updatable manner. These pieces of information are used for planning a treatment room schedule and are created in advance by the planner.

  The patient information includes patient identification information such as a patient's name and address, a treatable date (patient convenience) of each patient, and the like.

  The treatment plan is composed of treatment schedules and irradiation conditions for each patient. The treatment plan includes a patient ID (identifier) for identifying each patient, a treatment plan ID for identifying a treatment plan for each patient, an irradiation condition ID for identifying an irradiation condition for each treatment plan, and Treatment site of patient for each treatment plan, scheduled treatment start date, scheduled treatment end date, treatment period, irradiation information (showing how many times a day is irradiated), type of particle beam used for treatment irradiation , Energy, port state, irradiation dose for one treatment, total irradiation dose for the entire treatment period, and the like. FIG. 2 is an example of this treatment plan.

  The accelerator operating conditions are configured by accelerator operating days and non-operating days (maintenance days, etc.), accelerator characteristics such as the type and energy of the particle beam for each day or time zone, and switching timing of the accelerator characteristics.

  The treatment room operation condition is configured by a treatment room working day or non-working day (such as a maintenance day), a use start time, a use time, a preparation time, and a clean-up time for each patient.

  The planning condition is composed of constraining information on the treatment plan, such as setting the treatment room schedule so that the upper limit of the number of treatments per week for the patient is “○ times” and the upper limit of the number of treatments is satisfied. . FIG. 3 is an example of the planning conditions.

  The number-of-positions extraction unit 4 refers to the treatment plan stored in the storage unit 3 and extracts the number of times of patient positioning according to the following procedure.

  First, based on a treatment plan, the presence or absence of continuous irradiation performed on the same day is confirmed for every patient ID and treatment plan ID.

  The positioning number extracting means 4 basically determines that one positioning is performed for one irradiation, but continuous irradiation is determined as follows.

  In the case of continuous irradiation, it is determined whether or not the isocenter positions of the illumination are the same, and it is determined that irradiations with different isocenter positions are positioned. If the isocenter position is the same, it is determined whether the treatment table position is the same. It is determined that irradiations with different treatment table positions are positioned, and irradiation with the same treatment table position is determined to be performed once. For non-continuous irradiation, the number of positioning is one.

  For example, when there is no continuous irradiation, the number of irradiations is the number of positioning. When continuous irradiation is performed and there are two isocenters, the number of positioning is two. If there are three treatment tables with continuous irradiation and the same isocenter, the number of positioning is three. When there is continuous irradiation, the isocenter is the same, and the position of the treatment table is the same, the number of positioning is one.

  The irradiation time extraction unit 5 refers to, for example, a treatment plan stored in the storage unit 3 and extracts the total irradiation time of one day from this treatment plan. Therefore, for example, the required irradiation time for each time is recorded in advance as one piece of information on the treatment plan.

The treatment room usage time estimation means 6 estimates the treatment room usage time for each patient ID and each treatment plan ID. This estimation is performed according to the following equation, for example.
Treatment room usage time = [positioning time per time] x [number of times of positioning] + [total irradiation time per day]
As the positioning time per time, for example, a clinically acquired statistical value or a value obtained by giving a necessary margin to the statistical value is used.

  The treatment room use time storage means 7 stores the treatment room use time estimated by the treatment room use time estimation means 6 for each patient and treatment plan (see FIG. 2).

  The treatment room schedule planning unit 8 uses the treatment room use time based on the estimation stored in the treatment room use time storage unit 7 and estimates the use state and vacancy state of the treatment room for each patient and treatment plan. Then, the treatment room schedule planning means 8 is a method based on optimization such as minimizing patient waiting time or treatment room vacancy for each patient and treatment plan based on the estimated usage situation and vacancy situation. The treatment room schedule that increases the utilization efficiency of the treatment room is determined.

  The data management means 9 stores the treatment room schedule determined by the treatment room schedule planning means 8. This treatment room schedule is processed into data that can be displayed in the form of a schedule, for example, and stored.

  The display means 10 monitors and displays the treatment room schedule stored in the data management means 9 according to the operator's request. The treatment room schedule includes a list and order of patients who use the treatment room for each day and time zone.

  According to the particle beam therapy scheduling system of the present embodiment, the treatment room schedule is drawn by extracting the treatment room usage time from the number of times of positioning and the irradiation time calculated based on the information such as the treatment plan, so that the treatment room schedule is highly reliable. A treatment room schedule can be developed.

  In the particle beam therapy scheduling system 1 of the present embodiment, a particle beam therapy scheduling method for planning a treatment room schedule for particle beam therapy is performed.

  In this particle beam therapy scheduling method, information (number of continuous irradiations) indicating the number of times of positioning for each patient and the irradiation time per day are stored, the number of times of positioning is extracted, and the number of times of positioning per positioning is determined. Multiply the required time to calculate the positioning time. The time obtained by adding the calculated positioning time to the irradiation time per day is estimated as the treatment room usage time per patient.

  Then, a treatment room schedule is made using this treatment room usage time.

  In this particle beam therapy scheduling method, a patient positioning operation that takes a maximum time among various operations of therapy irradiation is taken into consideration when planning a treatment room schedule.

(Second Embodiment)
FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a second embodiment of the particle beam therapy scheduling system according to the present invention.

  This embodiment is an example in which treatment room unusable information storage means 11A and alternative schedule planning means 12A are added to the particle beam therapy scheduling system 1 of the first embodiment. Note that the same components as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof is omitted, and the configurations of the first embodiment that are changed or newly added are described by adding “A” to the symbols.

  The treatment room unavailability information storage means 11A replaces the treatment room unavailability information when the treatment room equipment failure, the patient's physical condition based on the assumption, or other treatment unavailability information (treatment room unavailability) is received. Notify the schedule planning means 12A. This treatment room unusable information is prepared in advance, and is sent from the operator to the treatment room unusable information storage unit 11A via the input unit 2.

  When receiving the treatment room unusable information from the treatment room unusable information storage unit 11A, the substitute schedule drafting means 12A creates an “alternate schedule” separately from the already planned treatment room schedule.

  The alternative schedule covers the remaining treatable patients and treatment rooms on the assumption that a patient cannot be irradiated at the scheduled date or time, or a treatment room becomes unavailable due to equipment failure, etc. Develop an alternative schedule according to the usual procedure of the treatment room schedule. Since various combinations of the virtual patient, the date and time, the treatment room, etc. that cannot be treated are possible, alternative schedules are created in a plurality of patterns according to the combination.

  The display means 10 simultaneously or selectively displays the treatment schedule planned by the treatment room schedule planning means 8 and the alternative schedule planned by the alternative schedule planning means 12A.

  According to the particle beam therapy scheduling system 1A of the present embodiment, the particle beam therapy scheduling method is performed in the same manner as that shown in the first embodiment.

  In this particle beam therapy scheduling method, the date and time zone when any one of the treatment rooms cannot be used due to a problem of the patient or the treatment room or other circumstances is stored as treatment room unavailable information, and the treatment room unavailable information is stored. A treatment room schedule is prepared by excluding the marked treatment room days and time zones that cannot be used, and a plurality of patterns of alternative schedules are made using this as an alternative schedule. As a result, even when a sudden event such as a patient's convenience or a device failure occurs, it is possible to efficiently perform the daily treatment irradiation according to an alternative schedule considering the sudden event. In addition, since this alternative schedule does not need to be drafted by the staff, there is no burden on the staff due to the occurrence of a sudden event.

(Third embodiment)
FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a third embodiment of the particle beam therapy scheduling system according to the present invention.

  The present embodiment is an example in which a storage means 3B, a treatment room schedule monitoring means 13B, and a treatment room schedule replanning means 14B are added to the particle beam treatment scheduling system 1 of the first embodiment. Note that the same components as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof is omitted, and the configurations of the first embodiment that are changed or newly added are described by adding “B” to the symbols.

  The storage means 3B stores the progress of the treatment room schedule for each treatment room, that is, the state of irradiation that has already been completed or is currently being executed (for example, current patient: patient A, irradiation step: during the second execution of continuous irradiation, Current time: 15:30) is stored as “treatment room use result”. The treatment room usage record is stored automatically or by the operator via the input means 2.

  The treatment room schedule monitoring means 13B compares the treatment room schedule stored in the data management means 9 and already created by the treatment room schedule planning means 8 with the treatment room usage results stored in the storage means 3B. Monitor the time difference between schedule and treatment room usage. This monitoring is performed for each treatment room.

  The treatment room schedule re-planning means 14B performs the re-planning (revision) of the treatment room schedule on the condition that the time lag between the treatment room schedule and the treatment room use result is equal to or greater than a predetermined value.

  The revised treatment room schedule is basically performed according to the same procedure as in the first embodiment, and is designed so that the time lag is eliminated for all treatment rooms.

  When the treatment room schedule is revised, the treatment room schedule re-planning means 14B validates the latest treatment room schedule and invalidates the treatment room schedule whose time lag with respect to the treatment room usage record is more than a predetermined value.

  According to the particle beam therapy scheduling system of the present embodiment, the particle beam therapy scheduling method is performed in the same manner as that shown in the first embodiment.

  Furthermore, in this particle beam therapy scheduling method, the treatment room usage results for each treatment room indicating the progress of the treatment room schedule are stored, and the time lag between the treatment room schedule and the treatment room usage results is monitored, and the treatment room schedule is monitored. When the time lag of the actual use of the treatment room exceeds a predetermined value, the treatment room schedule is re-planned so that this time lag is resolved, and the treatment room where the time lag exceeds the predetermined value The treatment room schedule is re-planned to invalidate the schedule and validate the latest treatment room schedule. According to this particle beam treatment scheduling method, the planned treatment room schedule does not greatly deviate from the progress during the daily treatment irradiation. That is, when a certain time lag occurs, the treatment room schedule is corrected in real time so that the time lag is eliminated. In short, even when an event occurs in which the treatment irradiation process deviates from the treatment room schedule, the treatment irradiation proceeds according to the schedule without requiring the staff to revise the treatment room schedule.

  As described above, the particle beam therapy scheduling system according to the present invention has been described based on the first to third embodiments, but the specific configuration is not limited to these embodiments, and Modifications and additions of the design are permitted without departing from the gist of the invention described in (1).

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1,1A, 1B ... Particle beam therapy scheduling system, 2 ... Input means, 3, 3B ... Memory | storage means, 4 ... Positioning frequency extraction means, 5 ... Irradiation time extraction means, 6 ... Treatment room use time estimation means, 7 ... Treatment Room usage time storage means, 8 ... treatment room schedule planning means, 9 ... data management means, 10 ... display means, 11A ... treatment room unusable information storage means, 12A ... alternative schedule planning means, 13B ... treatment room schedule monitoring means, 14B: Treatment room schedule re-planning means.

Claims (5)

In a particle beam therapy scheduling system for planning a treatment room schedule for particle beam therapy,
Storage means for storing information serving as an index of the number of times of positioning for each patient and irradiation time per day;
A treatment room usage time estimation unit that calculates a positioning time by multiplying the number of times of positioning by a required time per positioning and uses a time obtained by adding the positioning time to the irradiation time per day as a treatment room usage time per patient. When,
Treatment room schedule planning means for planning a treatment room schedule using the treatment room usage time;
A particle beam therapy scheduling system comprising: Information serving as an index of the number of times of positioning includes a patient ID for identifying each patient, a treatment plan ID for identifying a treatment plan for each patient, an irradiation condition ID for identifying an irradiation condition for each treatment plan, As well as the patient's treatment site for each treatment plan, treatment start date, treatment end date, treatment period, illumination information, type of particle beam used for treatment irradiation, energy, port state, irradiation dose for one treatment, Including the total radiation dose for the entire treatment period,
Based on the information used as an index of the number of times of positioning, it is determined that continuous irradiation with different isocenters and continuous irradiation with different isocenters and different treatment table positions are performed for each patient ID and treatment plan ID. 2. The particle beam therapy scheduling system according to claim 1, further comprising positioning number extracting means for performing positioning. A treatment room unusable information storage means for storing days and time periods when any of the treatment rooms cannot be used as treatment room unusable information;
3. The particle according to claim 1, further comprising: an alternative schedule planning means for planning an alternative schedule that excludes a day and a time zone in which a treatment room marked in the treatment room unusable information cannot be used. Radiotherapy scheduling system. The storage means stores the treatment room usage results for each treatment room indicating the progress of the treatment room schedule, and
A treatment room schedule monitoring means for monitoring a time lag between the treatment room schedule and the treatment room use results;
When the time lag between the treatment room schedule and the treatment room usage results is equal to or greater than a predetermined value, the treatment room schedule is re-planned so that the time lag is resolved, and the time lag is equal to or greater than the predetermined value. 3. The particle beam therapy scheduling system according to claim 1, further comprising: a treatment room schedule re-planning unit that invalidates the treatment room schedule that has been established and validates the treatment room schedule that has been re-designed. 4. In a particle beam therapy scheduling method for planning a treatment room schedule for particle beam therapy,
Extract the number of positioning from information that is an index of the number of positioning for each patient,
Multiplying the number of positioning times by the required time per positioning, and calculating the positioning time, and estimating the treatment room usage time per patient by adding the positioning time to the irradiation time per day,
A method of scheduling a particle beam treatment, wherein a treatment room schedule is formulated using the treatment room usage time.

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