Acute Toxicity of Total Body Irradiation Using Volumetric Arc Therapy With a Focus on the Effect of Lung Dose Rate

Abstract

Purpose: To report adverse effects of high dose total body irradiation (TBI) delivered using a volumetric arc therapy (VMAT) technique and to assess pulmonary toxicity at dose rates of 40 and 100 monitor units per minute (MU/min). Methods and Materials: This retrospective study included patients >18 years old who received ≥8 Gy TBI using a VMAT technique. The TBI dose was prescribed to a planning target volume consisting of a 0.5 cm retraction of the body with the lungs subtracted. The objective function specified planning target volume coverage goals of D100% ≥ 90% and Dmax <130%. A lung dose control structure consisting of a 1 cm retraction of the lung volume was limited to Dmean <75%. Treatments were initially delivered with a dose rate of 40 MU/min for the thoracic isocenters and 100 MU/min for the other isocenters. Beginning in January 2021, a dose rate of 100 MU/min was used for all isocenters. All treatments were administered in 2 Gy fractions delivered twice daily. Acute toxicity was assessed for 30 days after TBI. Results: A total of 29 patients were included in this analysis who received TBI between January 2019 and October 2021. Prescription dose ranged from 8 to 12 Gy. Mean lung dose was 7.9 Gy (SD, 1.4 Gy) for patients treated at 40 MU/min and for patients treated at 100 MU/min 7.1 Gy (SD, 1.3 Gy). Mucositis was the most common grade 3 toxicity and occurred in 10 (34%) patients. Only 1 instance of pneumonitis was observed and occurred in a patient who received a mean lung dose of 10.1 Gy delivered at 40 MU/min. Conclusions: In this cohort of patients who received high dose TBI using a VMAT technique, the composite rate of acute toxicity was not unexpectedly high. We did not observe an increase in lung toxicity after increasing the dose rate of the thoracic isocenters from 40 MU/min to 100 MU/min.