Employing the therapeutic operating characteristic (TOC) graph for individualised dose prescription

Aswin L. Hoffmann*, Henk Huizenga, Johannes H. A. M. Kaanders

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleAcademicpeer-review

Abstract

Background: In current practice, patients scheduled for radiotherapy are treated according to 'rigid' protocols with predefined dose prescriptions that do not consider risk-taking preferences of individuals. The therapeutic operating characteristic (TOC) graph is applied as a decision-aid to assess the trade-off between treatment benefit and morbidity to facilitate dose prescription customisation. Methods: Historical dose-response data from prostate cancer patient cohorts treated with 3D-conformal radiotherapy is used to construct TOC graphs. Next, intensity-modulated (IMRT) plans are generated by optimisation based on dosimetric criteria and dose-response relationships. TOC graphs are constructed for dose-scaling of the optimised IMRT plan and individualised dose prescription. The area under the TOC curve (AUC) is estimated to measure the therapeutic power of these plans. Results: On a continuous scale, the TOC graph directly visualises treatment benefit and morbidity risk of physicians' or patients' choices for dose (de-) escalation. The trade-off between these probabilities facilitates the selection of an individualised dose prescription. TOC graphs show broader therapeutic window and higher AUCs with increasing target dose heterogeneity. Conclusions: The TOC graph gives patients and physicians access to a decision-aid and read-out of the trade-off between treatment benefit and morbidity risks for individualised dose prescription customisation over a continuous range of dose levels.
Original languageEnglish
Article number55
JournalRadiation Oncology
Volume8
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 7 Mar 2013

Keywords

  • Radiotherapy
  • Treatment planning
  • Individualisation
  • Dose-response relations
  • Decision-making

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