Reconstructing 3D proton dose distribution using ionoacoustics.

In proton therapy high energy protons are used to irradiate a tumor. Ideally, the delivered proton dose distribution is measured during treatment to ensure patient safety and treatment effectiveness. Here we investigate if we can use the ionoacoustic wave field to monitor the actual proton dose distribution for the two most commonly used proton accelerators; the isochronous cyclotron and the synchrocyclotron. To this end we model the acoustic field generated by the protons when irradiating a heterogeneous cancerous breast with a 89 MeV proton beam. To differentiate between the systems, idealized temporal micro-structures of the beams have been implemented. Results show that by employing model-based inversion we are able to reconstruct the 3D dose distributions from the simulated noisy pressure fields. Good results are obtained for both systems; the absolute error in the position of the maximum amplitude of the dose distribution is 5.0 mm for the isochronous cyclotron and 5.2 mm for the synchrocyclotron. In conclusion, this numerical study suggests that the ionoacoustic wave field may be used to monitor the proton dose distribution during breast cancer treatment.

Rapid transient pressure field computations in the nearfield of circular transducers using frequency-domain time-space decomposition.

The fast nearfield method, when combined with time-space decomposition, is a rapid and accurate approach for calculating transient nearfield pressures generated by ultrasound transducers. However, the standard time-space decomposition approach is only applicable to certain analytical representations of the temporal transducer surface velocity that, when applied to the fast nearfield method, are expressed as a finite sum of products of separate temporal and spatial terms. To extend time-space decomposition such that accelerated transient field simulations are enabled in the nearfield for an arbitrary transducer surface velocity, a new transient simulation method, frequency-domain time-space decomposition (FDTSD), is derived. With this method, the temporal transducer surface velocity is transformed into the frequency domain, and then each complex-valued term is processed separately. Further improvements are achieved by spectral clipping, which reduces the number of terms and the computation time. Trade-offs between speed and accuracy are established for FDTSD calculations, and pressure fields obtained with the FDTSD method for a circular transducer are compared with those obtained with Field II and the impulse response method. The FDTSD approach, when combined with the fast nearfield method and spectral clipping, consistently achieves smaller errors in less time and requires less memory than Field II or the impulse response method.

A contrast source method for nonlinear acoustic wave fields in media with spatially inhomogeneous attenuation.

Experimental data reveals that attenuation is an important phenomenon in medical ultrasound. Attenuation is particularly important for medical applications based on nonlinear acoustics, since higher harmonics experience higher attenuation than the fundamental. Here, a method is presented to accurately solve the wave equation for nonlinear acoustic media with spatially inhomogeneous attenuation. Losses are modeled by a spatially dependent compliance relaxation function, which is included in the Westervelt equation. Introduction of absorption in the form of a causal relaxation function automatically results in the appearance of dispersion. The appearance of inhomogeneities implies the presence of a spatially inhomogeneous contrast source in the presented full-wave method leading to inclusion of forward and backward scattering. The contrast source problem is solved iteratively using a Neumann scheme, similar to the iterative nonlinear contrast source (INCS) method. The presented method is directionally independent and capable of dealing with weakly to moderately nonlinear, large scale, three-dimensional wave fields occurring in diagnostic ultrasound. Convergence of the method has been investigated and results for homogeneous, lossy, linear media show full agreement with the exact results. Moreover, the performance of the method is demonstrated through simulations involving steered and unsteered beams in nonlinear media with spatially homogeneous and inhomogeneous attenuation.

An ultrasound cylindrical phased array for deep heating in the breast: theoretical design using heterogeneous models.

The objective of this theoretical study is to design an ultrasound (US) cylindrical phased array that can be used for hyperthermia (40-44 degrees C) treatment of tumours in the intact breast. Simultaneously, we characterize the influence of acoustic and thermal heterogeneities on the specific absorption rate (SAR) and temperature patterns to determine the necessity of using heterogeneous models for a US applicator design and treatment planning. Cylindrical configurations of monopole transducers are studied on their ability to generate interference patterns that can be steered electronically to the location of the target region. Hereto, design parameters such as frequency, number of transducers per ring, ring distance and number of rings are optimized to obtain a small primary focus, while suppressing secondary foci. The models account for local heterogeneities in both acoustic (wave velocity and absorption) and thermal (blood perfusion rate, heat capacity and conductivity) tissue properties. We used breast models with a central tumour (30x20x38 mm3) and an artificial thorax tumour (sphere with a radius of 25 mm) to test the design. Simulations predict that a US cylindrical phased array, consisting of six rings with 32 transducers per ring, a radius of 75 mm and 66 mm distance between the first and sixth transducer ring, operating at a frequency of 100 kHz, can be used to obtain 44 degrees C in the centre of tumours located anywhere in the intact breast. The dimensions of the volumes enclosed by the 41 degrees C iso-temperature are 19x19x21 mm3 and 21x21x32 mm3 for the central and the thorax tumours, respectively. It is demonstrated that acoustic and thermal heterogeneities do not disturb the SAR and temperature patterns.