Image-based versus atlas-based patient-specific S-value assessment for Samarium-153 EDTMP cancer palliative care: A short study

Use of SPECT/CT data is the most accurate method for patient-specific internal dosimetry when isotopes emit single gamma rays. The manual or semi-automatic segmentation of organs is a major obstacle that slows down and limits the patient-specific dosimetry. Using digital phantoms that mimic patient’s anatomy can bypass the segmentation step and facilitate the dosimetry process. In this study, the results of a patient-specific dosimetry based on CT data and XCAT phantom, a flexible phantom with predefined organs, are compared.
The dosimetry results (S-value and SAF) were calculated for a patient with breast cancer who received Samarium-153 ethylenediamine-N,N,N′,N′-tetrakis(methylenephosphonic acid (153Sm-EDTMP). Biodistribution of activity was obtained from the SPECT scan. The anatomical data and attenuation map were extracted from CT as well as the XCAT phantom with different BMIs. GATE Monte-Carlo simulator was used to calculate the dose to different organs based on the activity distribution and segmented anatomy.
The whole body dosimetry results are the same for both calculations based on the CT and XCAT with different BMIs; however for target organs, the differences between SAFs and S-values are high. In the spine, the clinically important target organ for Samarium therapy, the dosimetry results obtained from phantoms with unmatched BMIs between XCAT phantom and CT are substantially different.
We showed that atlas-based dosimetry using XCAT phantom even with matched BMI may lead to considerable errors as compared to calculations based on patient’s own CT. For accurate dosimetry results, calculations should be done using CT data.