This invention relates the use of cortisol blockers (glucocorticoid receptor [GR] antagonists) for the treating or preventing treatment resistant prostate cancer, treating or preventing neoplasia, and treating or preventing infection related to acute or chronic injury or disease.

The present invention provides a method and apparatus to decrease acute and late skin toxicity for breast cancer patients undergoing radiation therapy. This invention will enable better breast positioning during therapy, eliminating skin folds and reducing the skin dose below that required for development of moist desquamation. The present invention has the potential to reduce the volume of normal tissue and organs at risk of being irradiated during a course of whole breast radiation therapy.

A processing device determines a plurality of angles from which tracking images can be generated by an imaging device. The processing device generates a plurality of projections of a treatment planning image of a patient, the treatment planning image comprising a delineated target, wherein each projection of the plurality of projections has an angle that corresponds to one of the plurality of angles from which the tracking images can be taken. The processing device determines, for each angle of the plurality of angles, a value of a tracking quality metric for tracking the target based on an analysis of a projection generated at that angle. The processing device selects a subset of the plurality of angles that have a tracking quality metric value that satisfies a tracking quality metric criterion.

An x-ray imaging apparatus and associated methods are provided to execute multi-pass imaging scans for improved quality and workflow. An imaging scan can be segmented into multiple passes that are faster than the full imaging scan. Data received by an initial scan pass can be utilized early in the workflow and of sufficient quality for treatment setup, including while the another scan pass is executed to generate data needed for higher quality images, which may be needed for treatment planning. In one embodiment, a data acquisition and reconstruction technique is used when the detector is offset in the channel and/or axial direction for a large FOV during multiple passes.

The present invention relates to an apparatus (1) for use in irradiation therapy, comprising an ionization module (2) adapted to emit ionization irradiation, and a power source (4) and a control unit (5) to provide a user interface. The apparatus is characterized in that the apparatus comprises an UV module (3) adapted to emit UVA, UVB and/or UVC irradiation (9), whereby the ionization module and the UV module emit irradiation simultaneously or alternately, and the ionization module emits irradiation (8) at a wave length at least below 100 nm. The invention also relates to a use of the apparatus for radiating an object (7) and use of the apparatus and method for treatment of a mammal (7). A detector may measure and/or create an image of the irradiation (6).

A radiotherapy treatment system and method used for conducting radiographic X-ray imaging on a target organ during radiographic treatment. The system comprises (a) an x-ray beam source configurable to deliver an X-ray beam to a target organ, (b) optical means for converging and shaping said beam to a cone-shaped X-ray beam of photons which hit the target organ simultaneously, (c) multiple high-Z nanoparticles attachable to the target organ, said high-Z nanoparticles absorbing said X-ray radiation and emitting X-ray fluorescence (XRF) photons, (d) at least one XRF detector for detecting said XRF photons ejecting out of a patient's body, and (e) control means for controlling the radiotherapy treatment procedure.

The x-ray beam is focusable on a section in the target organ where the concentration of said high-Z nanoparticles leading to a desirable emission of said XRF photons, and in case the emission of said XRF photons decreases, the x-ray beam is movable to refocus on the section in the target organ where the emission of said XRF photons is desirable.

Systems and methods for the automatic generation and optimization of radiation therapy treatment plans, and systems and methods for the automatic generation and optimization of an adapted plan in an adaptive radiation therapy workflow.

A radiotherapy device can include a radiation source configured to deliver kilovolt (KV) or megavolt (MV) radiation and a detector configured to detect the delivered radiation and generate a plurality of images of a subject located between the radiation source and the detector. The radiotherapy device can further include a controller configured to detect an erroneous pixel in an image of the plurality of images and generate an averaged image. Each pixel of the averaged image can be generated by taking an average of two or more respective pixels in two or more corresponding locations of one or more of the plurality of images, and generating a pixel of the averaged image in a corresponding location to the erroneous pixel comprises excluding the erroneous pixel from the taking of the average.

An implantable device has a body that is substantially rigid and has a predetermined shape. The body is further bioabsorbable and has a density less than or equal to about 1.03 g/cc. When the device is implanted in a resected cavity in soft tissue, it causes the cavity to conform to the predetermined shape. The implantable device is further imageable due to its density being less than that of soft tissue such that the boundaries of the tissue corresponding to the predetermined shape can be determined.

A neutron activator for neutron activation of a material, the neutron activator being configured to produce neutrons from an interaction with a proton beam (7), the neutron activator comprising: a neutron source comprising a metallic target (1), and a Beryllium first reflector-moderator (4) peripheral to the neutron source and comprising a neutron activation-area (10) configured to accommodate the neutron source and the material to be activated, the neutron activation area (10) of the first reflector-moderator (4) comprising a bore configured to accommodate the neutron source.