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Advances in radiotherapy (RT) technologies permit significant decreases in the dose delivered to organs at risk (OARs) for patients with esophageal cancer (EC). Novel RT modalities such as proton beam therapy (PBT) and magnetic resonance-guided radiotherapy (MRgRT), as well as motion management techniques including breath hold (BH) are expected to further improve the therapeutic ratio. However, to our knowledge, the dosimetric benefits of PBT vs MRgRT vs volumetric-modulated arc therapy (VMAT) have not been directly compared for EC. We performed a retrospective in silico evaluation using the images and datasets of nine distal EC patients who were treated at our institution with a 0.35-Tesla MR linac to 50.4 Gy in 28 fractions in mid-inspiration BH (BH-MRgRT). Comparison free-breathing (FB) intensity-modulated PBT (FB-IMPT) and FB-VMAT plans were retrospectively created using the same prescription dose, target volume coverage goals, and OAR constraints. A 5 mm setup margin was used for all plans. BH-IMPT and BH-VMAT plans were not evaluated as they would not reflect our institutional practice. Planners were blinded to the results of the treatment plans created using different radiation modalities. The primary objective was to compare plan quality, target volume coverage, and OAR doses. All treatment plans met pre-defined target volume coverage and OAR constraints. The median conformity and homogeneity indices between FB-IMPT, BH-MRgRT and FB-VMAT were 1.13, 1.25, and 1.43 (PITV) and 1.04, 1.15, 1.04 (HI), respectively. For FB-IMPT, BH-MRgRT and FB-VMAT the median heart dose metrics were 52.8, 79.3, 146.8 (V 30Gy, cc), 35.5, 43.8, 77.5 (V 40Gy, cc), 16.9, 16.9, 32.5 (V 50Gy, cc) and 6.5, 14.9, 17.3 (mean, Gy), respectively. Lung dose metrics were 8.6, 7.9, 18.5 (V 20Gy , %), and 4.3, 6.3, 11.2 (mean, Gy), respectively. The mean liver dose (Gy) was 6.5, 19.6, 22.2 respectively. Both FB-IMPT and BH-MRgRT achieve substantial reductions in heart, lung, and liver dose compared to FB-VMAT. We plan to evaluate dosimetric outcomes across these RT modalities assuming consistent use of BH., Competing Interests: Conflicts of Interest The authors declare no conflicts of interest., (Copyright © 2023 American Association of Medical Dosimetrists. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Magnetic resonance imaging-guided radiation therapy (MRIgRT) has improved soft tissue contrast over computed tomography (CT) based image-guided RT. Superior visualization of the target and surrounding radiosensitive structures has the potential to improve oncological outcomes partly due to safer dose-escalation and adaptive planning. In this review, we highlight the workflow of adaptive MRIgRT planning, which includes simulation imaging, daily MRI, identifying isocenter shifts, contouring, plan optimization, quality control, and delivery. Increased utilization of MRIgRT will depend on addressing technical limitations of this technology, while addressing treatment efficacy, cost-effectiveness, and workflow training., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Image guidance for radiation therapy (RT) has evolved over the last few decades and now is routinely performed using cone-beam computerized tomography (CBCT). Conventional linear accelerators (LINACs) that use CBCT have limited soft tissue contrast, are not able to image the patient's internal anatomy during treatment delivery, and most are not capable of online adaptive replanning. RT delivery systems that use MRI have become available within the last several years and address many of the imaging limitations of conventional LINACs. Herein, the authors review the technical characteristics and advantages of MRI-guided RT as well as emerging clinical outcomes., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

External beam radiation therapy (EBRT) has increasingly been utilized in the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) due to technological advances with positive clinical outcomes. Innovations in EBRT include improved image guidance, motion management, treatment planning, and highly conformal techniques such as intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) and stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT). Moreover, proton beam therapy (PBT) and magnetic resonance image-guided radiation therapy (MRgRT) have expanded the capabilities of EBRT. PBT offers the advantage of minimizing low- and moderate-dose radiation to the surrounding normal tissue, thereby preserving uninvolved liver and allowing for dose escalation. MRgRT provides the advantage of improved soft tissue delineation compared to computerized tomography (CT) guidance. Additionally, MRgRT with online adaptive therapy is particularly useful for addressing motion not otherwise managed and reducing high-dose radiation to the normal tissue such as the stomach and bowel. PBT and online adaptive MRgRT are emerging technological advancements in EBRT that may provide a significant clinical benefit for patients with HCC., Competing Interests: Declaration of Conflicting InterestsMDC reports honoraria, research funding, and advisory board role for ViewRay, board of directors and disease site committee chair role for Proton Collaborative Group, and honoraria from IBA. SSL reports research funding from the Kuni foundation, travel support from JASTRO, and leadership roles as Assistant Councilor and Chair of CARROS Nominating Committee for the ACR and Member of the Board of Directors and Medical Director of Distinction in Practice in Stereotactic Radiotherapy Program for the Radiosurgery Society. The author(s) declare no other potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Given the positive results from recent randomized controlled trials in patients with oligometastatic, oligoprogressive, or oligoresidual disease, the role of radiotherapy has expanded in patients with metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). While small metastatic lesions are commonly treated with stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT), treatment of the primary tumor and involved regional lymph nodes may require prolonged fractionation schedules to ensure safety especially when treating larger volumes in proximity to critical organs-at-risk (OARs). We have developed an institutional MR-guided adaptive radiotherapy (MRgRT) workflow for these patients. We present a 71-year-old patient with stage IV NSCLC with oligoprogression of the primary tumor and associated regional lymph nodes in which MR-guided, online adaptive radiotherapy was performed, prescribing 60 Gy in 15 fractions. We describe our workflow, dosimetric constraints, and daily dosimetric comparisons for the critical OARs (esophagus, trachea, and proximal bronchial tree [PBT] maximum doses [D 0.03cc ]), in comparison to the original treatment plan recalculated on the anatomy of the day (i.e., predicted doses). During MRgRT, few fractions met the original dosimetric objectives: 6.6% for esophagus, 6.6% for PBT, and 6.6% for trachea. Online adaptive radiotherapy reduced the cumulative doses to the structures by 11.34%, 4.2%, and 5.62% when comparing predicted plan summations to the final delivered summation. Therefore, this case study presets a workflow and treatment paradigm for accelerated hypofractionated MRgRT due to the significant variations in daily dose to the central thoracic OARs to reduce treatment-related toxicity associated with radiotherapy., (Copyright © 2023 American Association of Medical Dosimetrists. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background and Purpose: To quantify the indication for adaptive, gated breath-hold (BH) MR-guided radiotherapy (MRgRT BH ) versus BH or free-breathing (FB) CT-based image-guided radiotherapy (CT-IGRT) for the ablative treatment of adrenal malignancies., Materials and Methods: Twenty adrenal patients underwent adaptive IMRT MRgRT BH to a median dose of 50 Gy/5 fractions. Each patient was replanned for VMAT CT-IGRT BH and CT-IGRT FB on a c-arm linac. Only CT-IGRT FB used an ITV, summed from GTVs of all phases of the 4DCT respiratory evaluation. All used the same 5 mm GTV/ITV to PTV expansion. Metrics evaluated included: target volume and coverage, conformality, mean ipsilateral kidney and 0.5 cc gastrointestinal organ-at-risk (OAR) doses (D 0.5cc ). Adaptive dose for MRgRT BH and predicted dose (i.e., initial plan re-calculated on anatomy of the day) was performed for CT-IGRT BH and MRgRT BH to assess frequency of OAR violations and coverage reductions for each fraction., Results: The more common VMAT CT-IGRT FB , with its significantly larger target volumes, proved inferior to MRgRT BH in mean PTV and ITV/GTV coverage, as well as small bowel D 0.5cc . Conversely, VMAT CT-IGRT BH delivered a dosimetrically superior initial plan in terms of statistically significant (p ≤ 0.02) improvements in target coverage, conformality and D 0.5cc to the large bowel, duodenum and mean ipsilateral kidney compared to IMRT MRgRT BH . However, non-adaptive CT-IGRT BH had a 71.8% frequency of predicted indications for adaptation and was 2.8 times more likely to experience a coverage reduction in PTV D 95% than predicted for MRgRT BH ., Conclusion: Breath-hold VMAT radiotherapy provides superior target coverage and conformality over MRgRT BH , but the ability of MRgRT BH to safely provide ablative doses to adrenal lesions near mobile luminal OAR through adaptation and direct, real-time motion tracking is unmatched., (Copyright © 2021 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Colorectal cancer is the third most common cancer in men and the second most common in women worldwide, and the incidence is increasing among younger patients. 30% of these malignancies arise in the rectum. Patients with rectal cancer have historically been managed with preoperative radiation, followed by radical surgery, and adjuvant chemotherapy, with permanent colostomies in up to 20% of patients. Beginning in the early 2000s, non-operative management (NOM) of rectal cancer emerged as a viable alternative to radical surgery in select patients. Efforts have been ongoing to optimize neoadjuvant therapy for rectal cancer, thereby increasing the number of patients potentially eligible to forgo radical surgery. Magnetic resonance guided radiotherapy (MRgRT) has recently emerged as a treatment modality capable of intensifying preoperative radiation therapy for rectal cancer patients. This technology may also predict which patients will achieve a complete response to preoperative therapy, thereby allowing for more appropriate selection of patients for NOM. The present work seeks to illustrate the potential role MRgRT could play in personalizing rectal cancer treatment thus expanding the role of NOM in rectal cancer.