JP2014161396A - Patient positioning system for particle beam therapy - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To efficiently operate a particle beam therapy device, and conduct highly accurate particle beam therapy by maintaining the accuracy of patient positioning.SOLUTION: A patient positioning system for particle beam therapy includes: a top plate 8t for positioning and fixing a patient K; a conveyance table 8m for conveying the top plate 8t; a top plate installation part 8i provided in an irradiation chamber 4 that can transfer the top plate 8t with the conveyance table 8m without tilting the top plate 8t and installs the received top plate 8t with an isocenter C set in the irradiation chamber 4 as a reference; a top plate installation part 8p provided in a preparation chamber 5 that can transfer the top plate 8t with the conveyance table 8m without tilting the top plate 8t and installs the received top plate 8t with a temporary isocenter Cv corresponding to the isocenter C as a reference; and a rotating table 7 installed at a corner of the conveyance path Wp for the top plate 8t from the irradiation chamber 4 to the preparation chamber 5 that rotates the direction of the conveyance table 8m in an arbitrary direction.

Description

  The present invention relates to a patient positioning system for particle beam therapy for positioning a patient to be treated in a particle beam therapy system used for cancer therapy or the like.

  In the particle beam therapy, treatment is performed by irradiating an affected area to be treated with a beam of charged particles (particle beam) and damaging the affected tissue. At that time, in order to give a sufficient dose to the affected tissue without damaging the surrounding tissue, it is required to control the irradiation dose and the irradiation range (irradiation field) with high accuracy. On the other hand, the patient to be irradiated is also required to be positioned so as not to deviate from the assumed body position and position, and positioning is performed while checking the state in several stages.

  Therefore, the time required for positioning exceeds the time required for actual irradiation, and the time for one patient to occupy the irradiation room becomes too long, making it difficult to operate the particle beam therapy system efficiently. was there. Therefore, a method has been proposed in which a preparation room is provided separately from the irradiation room where the irradiation is actually performed, and after positioning in the preparation room, a bed on which the positioned patient is placed is transferred to the irradiation room for treatment (for example, Patent Document 1 or 2).

JP 2000-288102 A (paragraphs 0019 to 0023, FIGS. 1 and 2) JP 2012-148026 A (paragraphs 0011 to 0034, FIGS. 1 to 4)

  On the other hand, since the irradiation chamber is surrounded by a shielding body to prevent leakage of particle beams to the outside, the transfer path from the preparation chamber to the irradiation chamber is a maze, and a turning angle appears during transfer. However, in the above document, there is only a description about the movement of the bed, in which the wheel is described at the lower part. Therefore, if a labyrinth-like transport path is simply transported on a bed with wheels, an unstable force acts on the patient when passing through a corner, and the patient is deviated from the positioned state, thus maintaining positioning accuracy. It was difficult.

  The present invention has been made in order to solve the above-described problems, and it is possible to efficiently operate a particle beam therapy apparatus and to perform highly accurate particle beam therapy while maintaining patient positioning accuracy. To do.

  The patient positioning system for particle beam therapy according to the present invention is for irradiating a particle beam in an irradiation chamber surrounded by a shield, and for positioning a patient in a preparation chamber provided apart from the irradiation chamber. It is a patient positioning system for particle beam therapy, and is provided in a top plate for positioning and fixing the patient, a transport table for transporting the top plate, and the irradiation chamber, without tilting the top plate, The top plate can be delivered to the transport table, and the received top plate is installed in the preparation room, and a first top plate installation unit that installs the received top plate based on an isocenter set in the irradiation chamber. From the irradiation chamber, a second top plate installation section that can deliver the top plate to the carrier without tilting, and install the received top plate with reference to a temporary isocenter corresponding to the isocenter. It is installed in corner of the conveying path of the top plate extending in serial preparation chamber, characterized in that and a turntable for rotating the transport stand orientation in any direction.

  According to the patient positioning system for particle beam therapy of the present invention, since the turntable for rotating the direction of the transport table in an arbitrary direction is installed at the corner of the transport path of the top board, the particle beam therapy system can be operated efficiently. Therefore, it is possible to perform the particle beam therapy with high accuracy while maintaining the positioning accuracy of the patient.

It is a plane schematic diagram for demonstrating the structure of the patient positioning system for particle beam therapy concerning Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a schematic diagram for demonstrating the structure of the particle beam therapy apparatus using the patient positioning system for particle beam therapy concerning Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a figure for demonstrating the direction of the patient in the movement in the patient positioning system for particle beam therapy concerning Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a plane schematic diagram for demonstrating the structure of the patient positioning system for particle beam therapy concerning Embodiment 2 of this invention.

Embodiment 1 FIG.
Hereinafter, the configuration of the patient positioning system for particle beam therapy according to the first exemplary embodiment of the present invention will be described. 1 to 3 are diagrams for explaining a patient positioning system for particle beam therapy according to a first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 is a plan view for explaining a configuration of the patient positioning system for particle beam therapy. FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a part from the accelerator to the irradiation chamber for explaining the configuration of the particle beam therapy system using the patient positioning system for particle beam therapy. FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram for explaining the orientation of the patient with respect to the traveling direction when the patient is transported from the preparation room to the irradiation room in the patient positioning system for particle beam therapy. FIG. FIG. 3B shows a state when viewed from the side.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the patient positioning system for particle beam therapy according to the first embodiment of the present invention is characterized by irradiation chambers 4A, 4B, which are surrounded by a shielding wall 4w to irradiate the particle beam. .. Apart from (collectively irradiation chamber 4), a preparation chamber 5 for patient positioning is provided separately from the irradiation chamber 4, and a turntable is provided at the corner of the transport path Wp from the preparation chamber 5 to the irradiation chamber 4. (Turntable) 7 is arranged. Here, before describing the patient positioning system for particle beam therapy, the configuration of the particle beam therapy apparatus will be described.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the particle beam therapy system has a circular accelerator 1 (hereinafter simply referred to as an accelerator) that is a synchrotron as a particle beam supply source, and irradiation devices 3 </ b> A and 3 </ b> B provided for each irradiation chamber 4. ... (collectively irradiation device 3), accelerator 1 and irradiation device 3 are connected, and transport system 2 for transporting particle beams from accelerator 1 to irradiation device 3 in each irradiation chamber 4 and these systems are controlled. And a control system (not shown). In the figure, for simplification, only two irradiation chambers 4 and irradiation devices 3 are shown among a plurality of irradiation chambers and irradiation devices.

  The accelerator 1 includes a vacuum duct 11 serving as an orbital path for circulating charged particles, an incident device 12 for allowing charged particles supplied from the front accelerator 20 to enter the vacuum duct 11, and the charged particles circulating in the vacuum duct 11. Deflection electromagnets 13a, 13b, 13c, 13d (collectively deflection electromagnets 13) for deflecting the trajectory of the charged particles so as to circulate along the trajectory, and a converging electromagnet 14a for converging the charged particles on the circular trajectory so as not to diverge. , 14b, 14c, 14d (collectively converging electromagnet 14), a high-frequency accelerating cavity 15 that accelerates by applying a high-frequency voltage synchronized with the circulating charged particles, and a particle beam having a predetermined energy that is accelerated in the accelerator 1 As an extraction device 16 for taking out from the accelerator 1 and emitting it to the transport system 2, And a sextupole electromagnet 17 to excite resonance in the orbit. Further, for example, the deflection electromagnet 13 is a direct current power source for controlling the excitation current, and the high frequency acceleration cavity 15 is a high frequency source for supplying a high frequency voltage. A device is not provided.

  In addition, the front accelerator 20 is illustrated as a single device in the figure for the sake of simplicity, but in reality, an ion source (ion) that generates charged particles (ions) such as protons and carbon (heavy particles) ( Ion beam generator) and a linear accelerator system for initial acceleration of the generated charged particles. The charged particles incident on the accelerator 1 from the pre-stage accelerator 20 are accelerated by a high frequency electric field and accelerated to about 70 to 80% of the speed of light while being bent by a magnet.

  The particle beam accelerated and emitted by the accelerator 1 is emitted to a transport system 2 called a HEBT (High Energy Beam Transport) system. The transport system 2 includes a vacuum duct serving as a particle beam transport path, a switching electromagnet that is a switching device that switches the beam trajectory of the particle beam, and a deflection electromagnet that deflects the particle beam to a predetermined angle. Thereby, the particle beam emitted from one accelerator 1 can be supplied to the irradiation device 3 in an arbitrary irradiation chamber 4 by switching the trajectory as necessary with a switching electromagnet.

  The irradiation device 3 forms the particle beam supplied from the transport system 2 into an irradiation field corresponding to the size and depth of the irradiation target and irradiates the affected area. The irradiation device 3 includes a scanning electromagnet that deflects the particle beam supplied from the accelerator 1 in an arbitrary direction within a plane substantially perpendicular to the beam axis, and the width of the Bragg peak according to the thickness of the irradiation target. A ridge filter for expanding the range, a range shifter for changing the energy (range) of the particle beam according to the depth of the irradiation target (irradiation depth), and in some cases, a limiter such as a multi-leaf collimator is provided. Irradiation is performed by forming an irradiation field corresponding to the affected area with reference to isocenters CA, CB,... (Collectively isocenter C) set for each irradiation chamber 4.

  For positioning the patient on the treatment table with such a particle beam therapy system, for example, high accuracy within ± 0.3 mm is required, which is called rough setting using a laser pointer and precise setting using an X-ray image. As you can see, the steps are done closely. For this reason, as described in the background art, when positioning is performed in the irradiation chamber 4, the occupation time of the irradiation chamber per patient becomes longer depending on the time required for positioning, and the particle beam therapy system can be operated efficiently. It could be difficult. Therefore, also in the patient positioning system for particle beam therapy according to the first embodiment, a preparation chamber 5 for positioning is provided separately from the irradiation chamber 4, as shown in FIG.

  As shown in Patent Document 2, in the irradiation chamber 4 and the preparation chamber 5, the top plate 8t on which the patient K is placed can be fixed with the isocenter C and the temporary isocenter Cv as references. A plate installing portion 8i (in the drawing, the inside of the irradiation chamber 4A is described as 8iA and the inside of 4B is described as 8iB), 8p is installed. A top plate movement (not shown) is provided to the top plate installation units 8i, 8p, the transport table 8m, and the top plate 8t in order to freely transfer the top plate 8t to the transport table 8m while maintaining the posture of the top plate 8t. A device is provided. The top plate moving device is composed of, for example, a rail, a bearing, a driving device, and the like, and the top plate 8t is not tilted, and the top plate setting unit 8i and the transfer table 8m or between the top plate setting unit 8p and the transfer table 8m It can move smoothly. Accordingly, the top plate 8t can be freely placed between the top plate installation unit 8i and the transport table 8m or between the top plate installation unit 8p and the transport table 8m without losing the posture of the patient K positioned and fixed on the top plate 8t. Can be replaced.

  In this way, positioning is fixed in the preparation chamber 5 by using the patient transport device 8 provided with the top plate installation portions 8i and 8p provided in the irradiation chamber 4 and the preparation chamber 5, the transport table 8m, and the top plate 8t. The patient can be transported into the irradiation chamber 4 to perform particle beam irradiation. At this time, a laser pointer, an X-ray imaging device, and the like (not shown) are installed in the preparation chamber 5, and settings such as rough installation by the laser pointer and precise positioning with respect to the temporary isocenter Cv by the X-ray imaging device or the like are performed. be able to.

  The provisional isocenter Cv set in the preparation chamber 5 corresponds precisely to the isocenter C in the irradiation chamber 4, so in the irradiation chamber 4, as long as the position and posture of the patient K with respect to the top plate 8 t are maintained. Precise irradiation based on the plan becomes possible. And when one patient is treating in irradiation room 4, the next patient can perform positioning work in preparation room 5, and can raise the utilization efficiency of a particle beam therapy system.

  However, the irradiation chamber 4 of the particle beam therapy system is provided with a shielding wall 4w in order to prevent leakage of the particle beam to the outside, and the passage 4a to the outlet is bent in a maze shape as shown in FIG. For this reason, no matter what route is set, a turning angle occurs in the transport route Wp from the preparation chamber 5 to the irradiation chamber 4. For this reason, when using a carriage that is equipped with a wheel with a variable axle direction called a universal wheel that is generally used, an unpredictable acceleration is applied to the patient K, and the position of the patient K There was a risk of deviation in posture.

  Therefore, in the patient positioning system for particle beam therapy according to the first embodiment of the present invention, the turntable 7 for rotating the transport table 8m in an arbitrary direction is installed on the curved floor of the transport path Wp. Thereby, at the turning corner, the conveyance table 8m can change its direction by rotating around the axis of the turntable 7, so that sudden force or force of unpredictable direction is not applied to the patient K, You can pass the corner. Note that the turntable 7 may be provided with a drive device that rotates by an angle specified by a switch or the like. In addition, a turntable is also installed below the top plate installation unit 8p, and when the top plate 8t is transferred from the top plate installation unit 8p to the transport table 8m, the direction of the top plate installation unit 8p is conveyed. The direction of the base 8m can be easily matched. Therefore, it is not necessary to attach wheels that change the direction of the axle and change the traveling direction to the transfer table 8m, and can stably move linearly.

  In addition, since it is not necessary to turn the carriage 8m to pass through the corner, as shown in FIGS. 3 (a) and 3 (b), the posture of the patient K can be kept constant with respect to the traveling direction, The direction and magnitude of the force is stable during linear movement. A shielding door 4d for shielding particle beams is installed at the boundary between the irradiation chamber 4 and the hallway 6, and a door 5d is installed at the boundary between the preparation chamber 5 and the hallway 6. Needless to say, they are appropriately opened and closed when moving them.

  In other words, once positioning is performed in the preparation chamber 5, the movement from the top plate setting unit 8p to the transfer table 8m in the preparation chamber 5, the movement on the transfer path Wp, and the transfer table 8m in the irradiation chamber 4 to the table setting unit 8i. During the movement, no extra force is applied to the patient K that causes the position or posture to collapse. For this reason, it is possible to perform irradiation in the irradiation chamber 4 while maintaining the positioning in the preparation chamber 5.

  In the above example, the example of the particle beam therapy apparatus in which two irradiation chambers 4A and 4B are provided for the preparation chamber 5 has been described. However, the particle beam therapy in which the number of irradiation chambers for one preparation chamber is appropriately increased or decreased. Needless to say, the present invention can also be applied to an apparatus.

  As described above, according to the patient positioning system for particle beam therapy (7, 8) according to the first embodiment, the irradiation of the particle beam is performed in the irradiation chamber 4 surrounded by the shield (shielding wall 4w). A patient positioning system for particle beam therapy for positioning a patient in a preparation chamber 5 provided at a distance from the irradiation chamber 4, and a top plate 8t for positioning and fixing the patient K; It is provided in the irradiation chamber 4 and the transfer table 8m for transferring the top plate 8t, and the top plate 8t can be delivered to the transfer table 8m without tilting the top plate 8t, and the received top plate 8t is set in the irradiation chamber 4. The top plate installation unit 8i, which is a first top plate installation unit installed on the basis of the isocenter C, and the preparation room 5 are provided in the preparation chamber 5, and the top plate 8t can be delivered to the transport table 8m without tilting the top plate 8t. The received top plate 8t Installed at the corner of the transport path Wp of the top panel 8t that is the second top panel installation unit that is installed on the basis of the temporary isocenter Cv corresponding to the center C and the top panel 8t from the irradiation chamber 4 to the preparation chamber 5. And the rotating table 7 that rotates the direction of the transfer table 8m (in the horizontal direction) in an arbitrary direction, so that a sudden force or an unpredictable force is applied to the patient K even at a corner. There is no such thing. Therefore, by providing the preparation chamber 5 at a position away from the irradiation chamber 4, the particle beam therapy system can be operated efficiently, and the position and posture deviation of the patient K during transportation can be suppressed, and the patient positioning accuracy can be reduced. Thus, it is possible to perform highly accurate particle beam therapy.

  In addition, since the second top plate installation unit (top plate installation unit 8p) is configured to be rotatable in any direction (within the horizontal direction), the carriage 8m can be moved only by linear drive. It is not necessary to attach a wheel that changes the direction of travel by changing the angle of the axle, and the linear movement can be stably performed.

Embodiment 2. FIG.
In the first embodiment, an example of a particle beam therapy system in which one preparation chamber is provided for a plurality of irradiation chambers has been described. The patient positioning system for particle beam therapy according to the second embodiment corresponds to a particle beam therapy system in which a plurality of preparation chambers are provided for a plurality of irradiation chambers. FIG. 4 is a plan view for explaining the configuration of the patient positioning system for particle beam therapy according to the second embodiment and a schematic diagram in which the supply path of the particle beam is combined. Same as 1. In the figure, components similar to those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof is omitted.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the patient positioning system for particle beam therapy according to the second embodiment of the present invention is a particle beam therapy system in which two preparation chambers 5A and 5B are provided for two irradiation chambers 4A and 4B. Corresponding to In the two preparation chambers 5A and 5B, top plate installation portions 8pA and 8pB are installed with reference to temporary isocenters CvA and CvB corresponding to the isocenter C of the irradiation chamber 4. The two preparation chambers 5A and 5B merge in the intermediate chamber 5c provided on the outlet side, and the transfer table 8m transferred from any of the preparation chambers is necessary for the turntable 7 installed in the intermediate chamber 5c. It is possible to advance toward the target treatment room (4A or 4B).

  As a result, even when there is a patient who takes a long time for positioning or a patient whose irradiation time is close, the preparation room 5 is efficiently occupied without being occupied by one patient. Can do.

  In the above example, the example of the particle beam therapy system in which the two irradiation chambers 4A and 4B are provided for the two preparation chambers 5A and 5B has been described. However, each preparation chamber and each irradiation chamber correspond one-to-one. Needless to say, the present invention can be applied to a particle beam therapy system in which the number of each is appropriately increased or decreased.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1: Accelerator, 2: Transport route, 3: Irradiation apparatus, 4: Irradiation room, 4a: Irradiation room passage, 4w: Shielding wall (shielding body), 5: Preparation room, 6: Common passage, 7: Turntable, 8 : Patient transport device, 8i: (first) top plate installation unit, 8m: top plate transport device, 8p: (second) top plate installation unit, 8t: top plate
C: Isocenter, Cv: Temporary isocenter, Wp: Transport path.

Claims (2)

A particle positioning treatment patient positioning system for performing irradiation of a particle beam in an irradiation chamber surrounded by a shield and positioning a patient in a preparation chamber provided apart from the irradiation chamber,
A top plate for positioning and fixing the patient;
A transport table for transporting the top plate;
A first top plate provided in the irradiation chamber, capable of delivering the top plate to the transfer table without tilting the top plate, and installing the received top plate with reference to an isocenter set in the irradiation chamber. An installation section;
A second top plate provided in the preparation chamber, capable of delivering the top plate to the carrier without tilting the top plate, and installing the received top plate with reference to a temporary isocenter corresponding to the isocenter An installation section;
A turntable that is installed at a corner of a transport path of the top plate from the irradiation chamber to the preparation chamber, and rotates the direction of the transport table in an arbitrary direction;
A patient positioning system for particle beam therapy, comprising:   2. The patient positioning system for particle beam therapy according to claim 1, wherein the second top plate installation section is rotatable in an arbitrary horizontal direction.

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