Individual 3-dimensional printed mold for treating hard palate carcinoma with brachytherapy: A clinical report.

This clinical report describes the use of a 3-dimensional (3D) printer to create an individual mold for delivering high-dose-rate interventional radiotherapy for hard palate cancer. The maxillary teeth and palate were scanned with an intraoral scanner (3Shape TRIOS 3). The scan was transformed into a mesh using the standard tessellation language (STL) format and aligned with Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine (DICOM) computed tomography (CT) images using free Blue Sky Plan 4 planning software. A mold was generated by tracing a guideline around the gingival margins of the maxillary teeth and palate on the scan mesh in accordance with established parameters. All data were imported into computer-aided design (CAD) software. For this patient, 3 parallel 2.2-mm-diameter ducts were placed 10 mm from each other in the mold mesh. A CT scan of the patient's mouth with the mold in place was used for treatment planning. Treatment was delivered by means of microSelectron digital afterloading.

Individualized 3D-printed templates for high-dose-rate interstitial multicathether brachytherapy in patients with breast cancer.

PURPOSE: High-dose-rate, multicatheter interstitial brachytherapy is technically complex and operator-dependent, requiring lengthy training and specialized skills. Furthermore, until the advent of contouring on computerized tomography (CT) images, difficulties existed in locating the target volume precisely. The present article reports the results of a study that aimed at producing and validating a 3D-printed template to aid in target volume localization for multicatheter interstitial brachytherapy in patients with breast cancer. METHODS AND MATERIALS: Thirteen patients, candidates for accelerated partial breast irradiation or boost, were enrolled in the study. The target volume was defined on CT slices, and a template with empty spaces corresponding to the target volume projection on the patient's skin was produced by a 3D printer. The procedure was compared with the standard method followed in our center (1) visually, by assessing overlap between the target volume projections on the patient's skin, (2) by X-ray findings, and (3) by intraclass correlation coefficient. RESULTS: Visual assessment and X-ray findings showed the 3D-printed target volume always fell within the standard volume in all 13 patients. The intraclass correlation coefficient indicated moderate agreement for both the medial and the lateral skin projections. CONCLUSIONS: The 3-D printed templates constitute a quick, easy, and reliable method to localize the target volume for high-dose-rate interstitial multicathether brachytherapy in patients with breast cancer and can safely be used in clinical practice.