Comparison of high-dose rate prostate brachytherapy dose distributions with iridium-192, ytterbium-169, and thulium-170 sources

Abstract

Purpose: Recent studies have identified that among different available radionuclides, the dose characteristics and shielding properties of ytterbium-169 ((169)Yb) and thulium-170 ((170)Tm) may suit high-dose rate (HDR) brachytherapy needs. The purpose of this work was to compare clinically optimized dose distributions using proposed (169)Yb and (170)Tm HDR sources with the clinical dose distribution from a standard microSelectron V2 HDR iridium-192 ((192)Ir) brachytherapy source (Nucletron B.V., Veenendaal, The Netherlands).

Methods and materials: CT-based treatment plans of 10 patients having prostate volumes ranging from 17 to 92cm(3) were studied retrospectively. Clinical treatment of these patients involved 16 catheters and a microSelectron V2 HDR (192)Ir source. All dose plans were generated with inverse planning simulated annealing optimization algorithm. Dose objectives used for the (192)Ir radionuclide source were used for the other two radionuclides. The dose objective parameters were adjusted to obtain the same clinical target (prostate) volume coverage as the original (192)Ir radionuclide plan. A complete set of dosimetric indices was used to compare the plans from different radionuclides. A pairwise statistical analysis was also performed.

Results and conclusions: All the dose distributions optimized with specific (192)Ir, (169)Yb, and (170)Tm sources satisfied the standard clinical criteria for HDR prostate implants, such as those for the Radiation Therapy Oncology Group clinical trial 0321, for combined HDR and external beam treatment for prostate adenocarcinoma. For equivalent clinical target volume dose coverage, the specific (169)Yb and (170)Tm sources resulted in a statistically significant dose reduction to organs at risk compared with microSelectron V2 HDR (192)Ir source. This study indicates that a (170)Tm or (169)Yb radionuclide source may be an alternative to the (192)Ir radionuclide sources in HDR brachytherapy.