In a radiation therapy system, treatment X-rays are delivered to a target volume at the same time that imaging X-rays are also delivered to the target volume for generating image data of the target volume. That is, during an imaging interval in which imaging X-rays are delivered to the target volume, one or more pulses of treatment X-rays are also delivered to the target volume. In each pixel of an X-ray imaging device of the radiation therapy system, image signal is accumulated during portions of the imaging interval in which only imaging X-rays are delivered to the target volume and is prevented from accumulating in each pixel during the pulses of treatment X-rays.

Described herein are systems and methods for positioning a radiation source with respect to one or more regions of interest in a coordinate system. Such systems and methods may be used in emission guided radiation therapy (EGRT) for the localized delivery of radiation to one or more patient tumor regions. These systems comprise a gantry movable about a patient area, where a plurality of positron emission detectors, a radiation source are arranged movably on the gantry, and a controller. The controller is configured to identify a coincident positron annihilation emission path and to position the radiation source to apply a radiation beam along the identified emission path. The systems and methods described herein can be used alone or in conjunction with surgery, chemotherapy, and/or brachytherapy for the treatment of tumors.

The invention comprises a method and apparatus for tracking and/or imaging impact of a particle beam treating a tumor using one or more imaging systems positionable about the tumor, such as a positron emission tracking and/or imaging system, where resulting tracking/imaging data: dynamically determines a treatment beam position, tracks a history of treatment beam positions, guides the treatment beam, and/or images a tumor before, during, and/or after treatment with the charged particle beam.

New techniques for remote administration of medicine and medical devices using an external guidance and activation system are provided. In some embodiments, medicine(s) and/or medical device(s) is/are energized to a predetermined threshold energy level by externally applied radiation, and then driven into the treatment target. The design of such device(s) (e.g., injectable machine(s)) may include sub-device(s), e.g., medical payload-carrying reservoir(s), injector(s) and abrasive tool(s), which may be activated magnetically and/or by such radiation. In some aspects, such sub-device(s) include actuable housing(s) and/or other sub-tool(s), delivering drugs to specific locations commanded by a control system or a user. In other aspects, a medicine and/or device is provided with multiple dipoles, each oriented differently in three-dimensional space, allowing a guidance control system, remote from the medicine or device, to drive the movement and three-dimensional orientation of the medical agent or particle according to a three-dimensional path.

Disclosed herein are radiotherapy methods and systems that can display a workflow-oriented graphical user interface(s). In an embodiment, a method comprises presenting, by a server, for display on a graphical user interface, an image of a position of a patient on a couch of a radiotherapy machine, whereby at least a gantry of the radiotherapy machine is configured to rotate around the patient; calculating, by the server, one or more predicted collisions between a part of the radiotherapy machine and at least one of (a) the patient or (b) another part of the radiotherapy machine; and when a portion of the patient is calculated to be in a collision with the part of the radiotherapy machine, revising, by the server, the graphical user interface such that the portion of the patient calculated to be in the collision is visually distinct in the image.

Disclosed is a computer-implemented method for determining a position of an anatomical tracking structure in a tracking image usable for controlling a radiation treatment such as at least one of radiotherapy or radio surgery of a patient, a corresponding computer program, a non-transitory program storage medium storing such a program and a computer for executing the program, as well as a system for the position of an anatomical tracking structure in a tracking image usable for controlling a radiation treatment such as at least one of radiotherapy or radio surgery of a patient, a system comprising an electronic data storage device and the aforementioned computer.

Methods and systems are disclosed for radiating a moving object. The method may comprise acquiring a plurality of indicators of the phase of a physiological cycle of a patient and a plurality of images of the patient that include a target. Each image may be taken at a different phase of the physiological cycle and may be registered to the phase at which the image was taken. The method may also include identifying the target in each of the plurality of images, calculating a dose of radiation required to treat the target, calculating the number, orientation, and dwell time of one or more radiation beams required to deliver the calculated required dose of radiation to the target, and calculating a position of each of the one or more radiation beams required to achieve the calculated orientation. Each position may be a function of the phase of the physiological cycle to which each of the plurality of images is registered.

A high-energy radiation treatment system can comprise a laser-driven accelerator system, a patient monitoring system, and a control system. The laser-driven accelerator system, such as a laser-driven plasma accelerator or a laser-driven dielectric microstructure accelerator, can be constructed to irradiate a patient disposed on a patient support. The patient monitoring system can be configured to detect and track a location or movement of a treatment volume within the patient. The control system can be configured to control the laser-driven accelerator system responsively to the location or movement of the treatment volume. The system can also include a beam control system, which generates a magnetic field that can affect the radiation beam and/or secondary electrons produced by the irradiation beam. In some embodiments, the beam control system and the patient monitoring system can comprise a magnetic resonance imaging system.

The present invention relates to a medical data processing method of determining the representation of an anatomical body part (2) of a patient (1) in a sequence of medical images, the anatomical body part (2) being subject to a vital movement of the patient (1), the method being constituted to be executed by a computer and comprising the following steps: a) acquiring advance medical image data comprising a time-related advance medical image comprising a representation of the anatomical body part (2) in a specific movement phase; b) acquiring current medical image data describing a sequence of current medical images, wherein the sequence comprises a specific current medical image comprising a representation of the anatomical body part (2) in the specific movement phase, and a tracking current medical image which is different from the specific current medical image and comprises a representation of the anatomical body part (2) in a tracking movement phase which is different from the specific movement phase; c) determining, based on the advance medical image data and the current medical image data, specific image subset data describing a specific image subset of the specific current medical image, the specific image subset comprising the representation of the anatomical body part (2); d) determining, based on the current medical image data and the image subset data, subset tracking data describing a tracked image subset in the tracking current medical image, the tracked image subset comprising the representation of the anatomical body part (2).

There is provided a patient's cranial position monitoring and controlling device for controlling a magnetic resonance (MR) guided radiation source module via an MR-guided radiation controlling device connected to the patient's cranial position monitoring and controlling device and an MR-guided radiation system including a patient's cranial position monitoring and controlling device, which allows for better MR-imaging while allowing patient position monitoring close to the patient.