Application of four-dimensional cone beam computed tomography in lung cancer radiotherapy

Objective This study explored the application of four-dimensional cone beam computed tomography (4D CBCT) in lung cancer patients, seeking to improve the accuracy of radiotherapy and to establish a uniform protocol for the application of 4D CBCT in radiotherapy for lung cancer. Methods 4D CBCT was applied to evaluate tumor volume response (TVR), motion, and center coordinates during radiotherapy in 67 eligible individuals with lung cancer diagnoses. The differences between 4D CBCT and 3D CBCT in different registration methods were compared. Results TVR was observed during treatment in 41% of patients (28/67), with a mean volume reduction of 41.7% and a median time to TVR of 19 days. Tumor motion was obvious in 16 patients, with a mean value of 0.52 cm (0.22 to 1.34 cm), and in 3 of 6 tumors close to the diaphragm (0.28 to 0.66 cm). Gray value registration based on mean density projection could still achieve close results to the 4D gray value registration. However, when the registration was based on bone alone, partial off-targeting occurred in the treatment in 41.8% of cases. The off-target rate was 19.0% when the tumor motion was ≤ 0.5 cm and 52.2% when the motion was > 0.5 cm. Conclusion Tumor volume and motion of intrapulmonary lesions in individuals diagnosed with lung cancer varied significantly in the third week of radiotherapy. 4D CBCT may be more advantageous for isolated lesions without reference to relative anatomical structures or those near the diaphragm. Grayscale registration based on mean density projection is feasible.