Toward Precision Radiotherapy: Physiological Modeling of Respiratory Motion Based on Ultra-quality 4D-MRI
The purpose of this study is to develop new ways to make medical images of the lungs and liver of adults using a technique called four-dimensional magnetic resonance imaging (4D-MRI). This technique produces three-dimensional movies of the inside of the chest and abdomen while the patient is breathing. (The fourth dimension is time!) This new way of medical imaging is being developed to help cancer patients undergoing radiation therapy. Radiation therapy is used to treat cancerous tumors. For radiation therapy to be effective, the precise size, shape, and location of the tumor within the body must be known. A particular difficulty for radiation treatment of lung and liver cancer is that the tumor moves during treatment because the patient is breathing. Therefore, tumor motion must also be incorporated into the treatment plan. This study aims to improve radiation treatment planning through better targeting and dose estimation based on 4D-MRI. Before this new imaging method can be used for radiation treatment planning, it must be tested in living, breathing volunteers.
• Patient is 21 or older
• Patient has primary or metastatic tumor(s) in the lungs or the liver
• Diameter of the tumor(s) is less than 7 cm
• Patient will receive radiation therapy (ordered by the treating Radiation Oncologist) as part of their treatment regimen
• Patient will undergo a planning CT scan with tumor motion assessment (planning 4D-CT ordered by the treating Radiation Oncologist) as part of their treatment regimen
• Patient has signed informed consent and is willing to comply with the 4D-MRI imaging protocol
⁃ The inclusion criteria for healthy volunteers are:
• Subject is 18 or older
• Subject has signed informed consent and is willing to comply with the 4D-MRI imaging protocol