A novel lung-avoidance planning strategy based on 4DCT ventilation imaging and CT density characteristics for stage III non-small-cell lung cancer patients

Functional planning based merely on 4DCT ventilation imaging has limitations. In this study, we proposed a radiotherapy planning strategy based on 4DCT ventilation imaging and CT density characteristics.For 20 stage III non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients, clinical plans and lung-avoidance plans were generated. Through deformable image registration (DIR) and quantitative image analysis, a 4DCT ventilation map was calculated. High-,...