Local dose-effect relations for lung perfusion post stereotactic body radiotherapy.

ABSTRACT

PURPOSE: To model the local dose-effect relation for lung perfusion reduction in lung cancer patients treated with stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Forty-two patients having upper-lobe peripheral tumours <5 cm treated with SBRT (3×18 Gy) underwent single-photon emission computed-tomography (SPECT) scans to measure the lung perfusion 2 weeks pre-SBRT, 4-months post-SBRT, and for 8 patients 15-months post-SBRT. The relation between the calculated relative local perfusion reduction and the normalised total dose (α/ß=3 Gy) at 4-months post-SBRT was modeled by 3-parameter logistic model and 2-parameter linear-maximum model. RESULTS: The relation between local dose and perfusion reduction at 4-months post-SBRT showed a maximum effect of 42.6% at doses >100 Gy and was best described by the logistic model with parameters (95% CI) M=42.6% (40.7-44.6), D50=28.7 Gy (26.3-31.1) and k=2.2 (1.8-2.5). A significant increase of this maximum effect to 65.2% was found at 15-months post-SBRT. CONCLUSIONS: The relation between local dose and perfusion reduction in patients treated with SBRT can be modeled by a 3-parameter logistic model. This demonstrated relationship 4-months post-SBRT approaches a plateau for doses >100 Gy, where 90% of the maximum lung-perfusion reduction is observed at NTD=78 Gy. A further perfusion reduction compared to 4-months post-SBRT was observed fifteen months post-SBRT.