JP6104839B2 - Radiation therapy equipment - Google Patents

Description

  Embodiments described herein relate generally to a radiotherapy apparatus that performs treatment by irradiating an affected area of a patient with a particle beam.

  Conventionally, radiation therapy is known in which treatment is performed by irradiating an affected part (tumor such as cancer) of a patient with radiation. In recent years, in particular, a particle beam therapy technique using an accelerated particle beam (particle beam) such as a heavy particle beam as radiation has attracted attention. In this particle beam therapy technique, a treatment apparatus having a large rotation mechanism (hereinafter referred to as a rotation gantry) is widely used.

  In this treatment apparatus, a treatment table is inserted into a treatment space formed inside a main body barrel constituting a rotating gantry, and a patient lying on the treatment table is irradiated with a particle beam to treat the affected part. is there. By rotating the main body cylinder on which the particle beam irradiation apparatus is mounted, beam irradiation from an arbitrary angle becomes possible.

  By the way, in order to accurately irradiate an affected part of a patient with various sizes, shapes, and depths with a particle beam, search for the affected part of the patient, positioning of the irradiation port for irradiating the beam, and position of the affected part with respect to the irradiation port It is important to perform the alignment accurately.

  For this reason, when carrying out particle beam therapy, X-rays are irradiated from an X-ray tube set in the treatment space, and a patient affected area is searched and specified from the X-ray photograph taken. Then, after setting the position of the irradiation port and precisely positioning the patient, the affected part is irradiated with a particle beam (for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2000-288102 A

  As described above, in the particle beam therapy system having the rotating gantry, before the particle beam beam is irradiated, X-rays are irradiated from the X-ray tube set in the treatment space, and the patient's affected area is detected from the photographed X-ray image. A search is performed.

  However, since the X-ray tube must be set in a limited space inside the body torso, the distance between the patient and the X-ray tube cannot be made large, and the setting of the position for irradiating X-rays is The degree of freedom was low. For this reason, the search of an affected part had the subject that it was restrict | limited to the narrow range with respect to a patient's body.

  The present invention has been made in consideration of such circumstances, and provides a radiotherapy apparatus that realizes a high degree of freedom in setting an X-ray irradiation position when searching for an affected part of a patient from X-ray imaging. Objective.

The radiotherapy apparatus of this embodiment includes a beam output port that outputs a particle beam to a patient on a treatment table set in a treatment space, and a beam transport system that guides the particle beam to the beam output port. A main body cylinder provided with a rotating roller for supporting the main body cylinder and rotating the main body cylinder at an arbitrary rotation angle, and penetrating the main body cylinder in a radial direction of the main body cylinder, and X An X-ray tube casing in which an X-ray tube for irradiating a line is installed, and a drive mechanism for driving the X-ray tube along a radial direction of the main body barrel are provided.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, when searching a patient's affected part from X-ray imaging, the radiotherapy apparatus which implement | achieves a high freedom degree in the setting of an X-ray irradiation position is provided.

The perspective view which shows the structure of the radiotherapy apparatus which concerns on 1st embodiment. XY sectional drawing which shows the structure of the radiotherapy apparatus which concerns on 1st embodiment. (A) The figure which shows the state in which the X-ray tube was stored in the X-ray tube casing, (B) The state in which the X-ray tube is sent out by the operation of the second drive mechanism and the X-ray is irradiated close to the patient. FIG. The perspective view which shows the structure of the radiotherapy apparatus which concerns on 2nd embodiment. XY sectional drawing which shows the structure of the radiotherapy apparatus which concerns on 2nd embodiment. (A) Partial enlarged view (XY cross section) which shows an example of the connection structure of a movable floor, a guide rail, and an X-ray tube casing, (B) The partial enlarged view which shows an example of the through-hole formed in the movable floor. (A) The figure which shows the movement state of a moving bed when a main body cylinder rotates 45 degrees counterclockwise, (B) The figure which shows the movement state of a moving bed when a main body cylinder rotates 90 degrees counterclockwise.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
(First embodiment)
FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of a radiation therapy apparatus 10 according to the first embodiment, and FIG. 2 shows an XY sectional view thereof.
The radiotherapy apparatus 10 includes a beam output unit 15 that outputs a particle beam 14 to a patient 13 on a treatment table 12 set in a treatment space 11, and beam transport that guides the particle beam 14 to the beam output unit 15. A main body cylinder 17 provided with a system 16, a rotation roller 18 that supports the main body cylinder 17 and rotates the main body cylinder 17 at an arbitrary rotation angle, and passes through the main body cylinder 17 in the radial direction of the main body cylinder 17. And an X-ray tube casing 20 (20a, 20b) in which an X-ray tube 19 for irradiating X-rays is provided.

  The main body cylinder 17 has a cylindrical shape in which the treatment space 11 is formed inside. The treatment table 12 on which the patient 13 is lying is set to a desired position and direction in the treatment space 11 by a moving arm 29 inserted from the outside of the main body trunk 17. The movable arm 29 is fixed to a building structure in which the radiation therapy apparatus 10 is installed, for example, a gantry (not shown).

  A beam output unit 15 that outputs the particle beam 14 to the patient 13 in the treatment space 11 and a beam transport system 16 that guides the particle beam 14 to the beam output unit 15 rotate integrally with the main body 17. Is provided.

  The particle beam 14 is output by accelerating ions (heavy particles or proton ions) generated by an ion source (not shown) with a linear accelerator, and then entering a circular accelerator to increase it to a set energy. The particle beam 14 is incident from the rotation axis (Z-axis) direction of the main body cylinder 17 through the beam transport system 16 and the trajectory is deflected by a beam electromagnet (not shown) mounted on the beam transport system 16. Then, it is guided to the beam output unit 15.

  A plurality of rotating rollers 18 are provided so as to circumscribe both edges of the main body cylinder 17 and support the weight of the main body cylinder 17. The rotating roller 18 rotates the main body drum 17 around the rotation axis (Z axis) by the rotation driving. By controlling the amount of rotation of the rotating roller 18, it is possible to arbitrarily set the rotation angle of the main body trunk 17, and to output a beam from the arbitrary angle to the patient 13.

  The casing insertion tube 22 has a cylindrical shape, and the X-ray tube casing 20 is housed therein. The casing insertion tube 22 is inserted into a through hole formed in the radial direction of the main body cylinder 17 and fixed to the main body cylinder 17.

  By providing the X-ray tube casing 20 in the casing insertion tube 22 fixed in the radial direction of the main body cylinder 17, the X-ray tube casing 20 rotates integrally with the main body cylinder 17. Thereby, X-ray irradiation from an arbitrary angle to the patient 13 becomes possible.

The casing insertion tube 22 includes a first drive mechanism 25 that drives the X-ray tube casing 20 along the radial direction of the main body trunk 17.
The first drive mechanism 25 includes a first drive shaft 24 formed of a first motor 23, a cylindrical ball screw, and the like. One end of the first drive shaft 24 is directly connected to the first motor 23, and the other end is connected to the bottom of the X-ray tube casing 20.

  The first drive mechanism 25 converts the rotary motion by the first motor 23 into a linear motion via the first drive shaft 24, and drives the X-ray tube casing 20 along the radial direction of the main body trunk 17. Thereby, it becomes possible to adjust the length of the X-ray tube casing 20 inserted into the main body trunk 17.

  When irradiating the patient 13 with X-rays from the X-ray tube 19 in proximity, the patient 13 is inserted deeply into the main body trunk 17 like the X-ray tube casing 20b. On the other hand, when irradiating X-rays at a distance from the patient 13, the X-ray tube casing 20 is inserted shallowly into the main body trunk 17 like the X-ray tube casing 20a.

  In this way, by making it possible to adjust the distance between the X-ray tube casing 20 and the patient 13, the degree of freedom in setting the position for irradiating X-rays is expanded, so that the affected area can be searched in a wide range with respect to the patient 13 body. It becomes possible.

  The first drive mechanism 25 may be configured to drive the X-ray tube casing 20 using a hydraulic or pneumatic cylinder or the like instead of the first motor 23 and the first drive shaft 24. As long as the mechanism is driven along the radial direction of the main body drum 17, the structure using the first motor 23 and the first drive shaft 24 is not particularly limited.

  The X-ray tube casing 20 has a cylindrical shape, and an X-ray tube 19 for irradiating X-rays for imaging the affected part of the patient 13 or the skeleton of the patient 13 used for specifying the tumor position is provided therein. doing.

The X-ray tube casing 20 includes a second drive mechanism 28 that drives the X-ray tube 19 along the radial direction of the main body cylinder 17.
The second drive mechanism 28 includes a second motor 26 and a second drive shaft 27 formed coaxially with the first drive shaft 24. Similar to the first drive shaft 24, the second drive shaft 27 is composed of a ball screw or the like. One end of the second drive shaft 27 is directly connected to the second motor 26, and the other end is connected to the bottom of the X-ray tube 19.

  The second drive shaft 27 is set to have an inner diameter smaller than that of the first drive shaft 24 in order to avoid interference with the first drive shaft 24, and operates through the inside of the cylindrical first drive shaft 24 during driving. .

  The second drive mechanism 28 converts the rotary motion by the second motor 26 into a linear motion via the second drive shaft 27, and drives the X-ray tube 19 along the radial direction of the main body trunk 17. Thereby, the length of the X-ray tube 19 sent out from the X-ray tube casing 20 toward the center of the main body trunk 17 can be adjusted.

FIG. 3 shows the operation of the X-ray tube 19 installed in the X-ray tube casing 20.
The X-ray tube 19 is housed inside the X-ray tube casing 20 except when X-rays are irradiated for searching the affected part (FIG. 3A).

On the other hand, when irradiating X-rays, it is driven along the radial direction of the main body cylinder 17 by the second drive mechanism 28 and sent out from the tip of the X-ray tube casing 20.
When X-rays are irradiated close to the patient 13, the X-ray tube 19 is further sent out toward the center of the main body trunk 17 so that the tip of the X-ray tube 19 approaches the patient 13 (FIG. 3B )).

  In this way, by making it possible to adjust the position of the X-ray tube 19 delivered from the X-ray tube casing 20, the X-ray irradiation position can be set more finely. Further, by storing the X-ray tube 19 in the X-ray tube casing 20 except during irradiation, the X-ray tube 19 can be prevented from being damaged due to contact with other devices.

  The second drive mechanism 28 may be configured to drive the X-ray tube 19 using a hydraulic or pneumatic cylinder or the like instead of the second motor 26 and the second drive shaft 27. As long as the mechanism is driven along the radial direction, the configuration using the second motor 26 and the second drive shaft 27 is not particularly limited.

  The radiotherapy apparatus 10 may have a configuration in which at least one of the first drive mechanism 25 and the second drive mechanism 28 is not provided, or the casing insertion tube 22 is omitted and the X-ray tube casing 20 is replaced by the main body trunk 17. It is good also as a structure directly fixed to and providing.

Returning to FIG. 2, the description will be continued.
The X-ray detection unit 21 detects X-rays emitted from the X-ray tube 19 and is provided at a position facing the X-ray tube 19. One end is opened and the other end is a beam output unit. 15 is connected.

  The X-ray detection unit 21 is pivotally connected to the beam output unit 15 with the base end 38 (connection portion with the beam output unit 15) as an axis. The beam output unit 15 is curved so as not to interfere when the X-ray detection unit 21 rotates.

  When X-rays are irradiated, the X-ray detection unit 21 rotates around the base end 38 and is set in a direction orthogonal to the X-ray irradiation direction (solid line in the figure). On the other hand, when the main body 17 is rotated, the base end 38 is rotated in the direction away from the patient 13 and set to a position where it does not interfere with the patient 13 (broken line in the figure).

  As described above, the X-ray detection unit 21 rotates around the base end 38 to prevent contact between the X-ray detection unit 21 and the patient 13 when the main body trunk 17 rotates.

  In FIG. 2, the X-ray tube casings 20 a and 20 b are two, but a single X-ray tube casing 20 may be used. 20 may be added.

  By arranging a plurality of X-ray tube casings 20, X-rays can be simultaneously irradiated from other directions, so that a large number of X-ray images necessary for the affected area search can be acquired. As a result, the position of the affected part can be grasped early and accurately.

  The treatment table 12 is preferably made of a material that easily transmits X-rays, such as aluminum. Thereby, the photographed X-ray image becomes clearer and the affected part can be specified more accurately.

(Second embodiment)
4 shows a perspective view of the radiation therapy apparatus 10 according to the second embodiment, and FIG. 5 shows an XY cross-sectional view thereof. Note that the description of the same configuration and operation as those in the first embodiment is omitted. Further, the X-ray tube 19 and the first drive mechanism 25 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 are partially omitted from the illustration.

  The difference from the first embodiment is that a D-shaped guide rail 30 (30a, 30b) having a horizontal surface and a plurality of vertically long plates 34 are provided inside the main body trunk 17 and connected to each other. , And a movable floor 32 that is movable along the X-ray tube casing 20 (20a, 20b).

  In this manner, by supporting the moving floor 32 and the X-ray tube casing 20, the moving floor 32 is attached to the X-ray tube casing 20 when the X-ray tube casing 20 rotates integrally with the rotation of the main body trunk 17. It is pulled and can move along the guide rail 30.

  The guide rail 30 forms a D-shaped rail on the inside of the main body cylinder 17, the upper part is formed along the inner periphery of the main body cylinder 17, and the lower part is formed with a horizontal plane parallel to the treatment table 12. . Two guide rails 30 are provided on the upstream side and the downstream side of the main body drum 17, and support the moving floor 32.

  The guide rail 30 is inserted into and supported by the main body trunk 17 via a guide rail support member 31. The guide rail 30 a is supported from the downstream side of the main body trunk 17 via the guide rail support member 31, and the guide rail 30 b is supported from the upstream side of the main body trunk 17 via the guide rail support member 31. The guide rail support member 31 is fixed to a building structure outside the main body trunk 17, for example, a gantry.

  Since the guide rail 30 is supported from the outside of the main body cylinder 17 via the guide rail support member 31, the position of the guide rail 30 is not displaced even when the main body cylinder 17 rotates. The guide rail 30 needs to be arranged at a position where it does not interfere with the rotating beam output unit 15 and the X-ray tube casing 20.

  FIG. 6A is a partially enlarged view (X-Y cross section) showing a connection configuration of the guide rail 30, the movable floor 32, and the X-ray tube casing 20. FIG.

  In the movable floor 32, a plurality of vertically long plates 34 are connected via a connecting ring 33 to form a single plate that can be bent. The moving floor 32 is installed on the guide rail 30 so as to be movable along the rail in a direction orthogonal to the longitudinal direction of the vertically long plate 34. As a configuration in which the movable floor 32 is installed on the guide rail 30, for example, a configuration in which the guide rail 30 is convex and the movable floor 32 is concave may be engaged with each other.

  The X-ray tube casing 20 is pivotally supported on the moving floor 32 at a pivotal support point 35 by a pivotal support member such as a pin. In order to avoid interference between the X-ray tube casing 20 that rotates integrally with the main body drum 17 and the moving floor 32, the tip portion of the X-ray tube casing 20 has an acute angle, and the acute angle portion and the moving floor 32 are pivotally supported. Is desirable.

FIG. 6B is a partially enlarged view (XZ plane) showing an example of the through hole 36 formed in the moving floor 32.
The through hole 36 is formed by hollowing out a part of the moving floor 32 at a position between the guide rail 30a and the guide rail 30b. Then, the penetrating portion of the movable floor 32 and the X-ray tube casing 20 are pivotally supported at a pivot point 35. The X-ray tube 19 can enter and exit on the moving floor 32 through the through hole 36.

  Even if the moving floor 32 is formed by the through hole 36, the X-ray tube 19 can perform X-ray proximity irradiation on the patient 13 without interfering with the moving floor 32.

  Even if the moving floor 32 is made of a material that easily transmits X-rays, such as aluminum, the through-hole 36 is not formed in the moving floor 32, X-ray proximity irradiation is performed on the patient 13. It becomes possible.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of the moving state of the moving floor 32. (A) When the main body drum 17 rotates 45 ° counterclockwise, (B) shows a case where it rotates 90 °.

  When the X-ray tube casing 20 rotates with the rotation of the main body drum 17, the moving floor 32 moves on the guide rail 30 by being pulled by the X-ray tube casing 20 that is pivotally supported. Note that the insertion length of the X-ray tube casing 20 into the main body cylinder 17 needs to be adjusted during rotation, but the insertion length is adjusted by the first drive mechanism 25 (FIG. 2) starting from the shaft fulcrum 35. Is done.

  Thus, even when the main body trunk 17 rotates, a horizontal floor that allows the worker 37 to access can be formed inside the main body trunk 17. Further, since the moving floor 32 is pulled using the X-ray tube casing 20, the moving floor 32 can be moved inside the main body trunk 17 without providing a new drive mechanism such as a motor.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 7, the movable floor 32 can be moved on the guide rail 30 more smoothly by making the movable floor 32 detachable between adjacent vertically long plates 34.

  According to each radiotherapy apparatus described above, when an X-ray tube casing having an X-ray tube built in the radial direction of the main body cylinder is provided so as to penetrate the main body cylinder, the patient's affected area can be searched from X-ray imaging. In addition, it is possible to realize a radiotherapy apparatus that realizes a high degree of freedom in setting the X-ray irradiation position.

  Although several embodiments of the present invention have been described, these embodiments are presented by way of example and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. These novel embodiments can be implemented in various other forms, and various omissions, replacements, and changes can be made without departing from the scope of the invention. These embodiments and modifications thereof are included in the scope and gist of the invention, and are included in the invention described in the claims and the equivalents thereof.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Radiation therapy apparatus, 11 ... Treatment space, 12 ... Treatment table, 13 ... Patient, 14 ... Particle beam, 15 ... Beam output part, 16 ... Beam transport system, 17 ... Body trunk, 18 ... Rotating roller, 19 ... X-ray tube, 20 (20a, 20b) ... X-ray tube casing, 21 ... X-ray detector, 22 ... casing insertion tube, 23 ... first motor, 24 ... first drive shaft, 25 ... first drive mechanism, 26 ... Second motor, 27 ... Second drive shaft, 28 ... Second drive mechanism, 29 ... Moving arm, 30 (30a, 30b) ... Guide rail, 31 ... Guide rail support member, 32 ... Moving bed, 33 ... Connection ring 34 ... Long plate, 35 ... Shaft fulcrum, 36 ... Through-hole, 37 ... Worker, 38 ... Base end.

Claims (5)

A main body cylinder provided with a beam output port for outputting a particle beam to a patient on a treatment table set in a treatment space, and a beam transport system for guiding the particle beam to the beam output port;
A rotating roller that supports the main body cylinder and rotates the main body cylinder at an arbitrary rotation angle;
An X-ray tube casing provided through the main body cylinder in the radial direction of the main body cylinder, and equipped with an X-ray tube for irradiating X-rays;
And a drive mechanism for driving the X-ray tube along a radial direction of the body trunk .   The radiotherapy apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a first drive mechanism that drives the X-ray tube casing along a radial direction of the main body barrel. The beam output port is connected to an X-ray detection unit that detects the X-ray irradiated to the patient at a position facing the X-ray tube,
The X-ray detector is a radiation therapy apparatus according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the rotatable proximal to the shaft. A D-shaped guide rail provided inside the body trunk and having a horizontal plane;
A plurality of vertically long plates connected to each other, and further comprising a movable floor movable along the guide rail,
The radiotherapy apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3 , wherein the movable floor and the X-ray tube casing are pivotally supported. The radiotherapy apparatus according to claim 4 , wherein the moving floor is provided with a through-hole through which the X-ray tube built in the X-ray tube casing can enter and exit.

Images