Hybrid plan verification for intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) using the 2D ionization chamber array I'mRT MatriXX—a feasibility study

The 2D ionization chamber array I'mRT MatriXX (IBA, Schwarzenbruck, Germany) has been developed for absolute 2D dosimetry and verification of intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) for perpendicular beam incidence. The aim of this study is to evaluate the applicability of I'mRT MatriXX for oblique beam incidence and hybrid plan verification of IMRT with original gantry angles. For the assessment of angular dependence, open fields with gantry angles in steps of 10 degrees were calculated on a CT scan of I'mRT MatriXX. For hybrid plan verification, 17 clinical IMRT plans and one rotational plan were used. Calculations were performed with pencil beam (PB), collapsed cone (CC) and Monte Carlo (MC) methods, which had been previously validated. Measurements were conducted on an Elekta SynergyS linear accelerator. To assess the potential and limitations of the system, gamma evaluation was performed with different dose tolerances and distances to agreement. Hybrid plan verification passed the gamma test with 4% dose tolerance and 3 mm distance to agreement in all cases, in 82-88% of the cases for tolerances of 3%/3 mm, and in 59-76% of the cases if 3%/2 mm were used. Separate evaluation of the low dose and high dose regions showed that I'mRT MatriXX can be used for hybrid plan verification of IMRT plans within 3% dose tolerance and 3 mm distance to agreement with a relaxed dose tolerance of 4% in the low dose region outside the multileaf collimator (MLC).