By Patrick N McDermott
CRC Press
This book addresses five selected physics topics in modern cancer radiation therapy. Examining them in more detail than can be found in standard medical-physics textbooks, the author has also formulated and solved a large number of exercises that are provided at the end of each chapter, together with a detailed bibliography.
Despite its title, the book is not a substitute for comprehensive textbooks in medical-radiation physics, rather it complements them. It is therefore of interest to experienced medical physicists who would like to better understand the physics of their daily work, as well as to young researchers approaching this discipline for the first time, often following a PhD in particle physics.
The first section deals with the main tool of modern cancer radiation therapy: the electron linear accelerator (linac). Starting from the basics of electrodynamics, travelling- and standing-wave linear accelerators are discussed together with resonating cavities. Particular care is given to mathematical formulations and to the definition of symbols. This chapter could also appeal to accelerator physicists willing to know more about electron acceleration at energies of a few MeV.
Proton therapy, which is generally considered an advanced topic in medical radiation therapy, is approached in a somewhat easier way. Starting from an historical introduction, emphasis is given to accelerators and to dose-distribution systems, with a glimpse of future developments. It is a pity that carbon-ion therapy is not mentioned and that active dose-distribution systems are not discussed in more detail.
The two topics that follow address the daily work of the medical physicist. Dose-computation algorithms are treated following a careful mathematical formulation complemented by examples and references to practical cases. Deterministic radiation transport is introduced, starting from the basic quantities used in medical radiation physics. The transport and Fermi–Eyges equations are then derived and discussed.
The last theme, tumour control and normal tissue complications, is the most relevant for the patient. Is the therapy effective? What is the quality of life after treatment? The answers to these questions may be searched for using the bridge that connects physics to medicine. To accomplish this task, models are necessary. Starting from the concepts of probability and of dose-volume histograms, empirical and mechanistic models are presented together with the serial and parallel architecture of the organs in the human body.
The application of radiation physics to medicine is an expanding multidisciplinary field based on knowledge, tools and techniques derived from nuclear and particle physics. This book will therefore appeal not only to curious medical physicists and scientists active in the field, but also to physicists in general who – as the author comments – “like understanding”.
