FUNCTIONAL AND PHYSICAL IMAGING USING RADIATION

• US 20130010927A1
• Filed: 03/29/2012
• Published: 01/10/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 07/06/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Varian Medical Systems Incorporated (Siemens AG)
• Original Assignee: Varian Medical Systems Incorporated (Siemens AG)
• Inventors: SEPPI, Edward J., Parry, Renate
• Granted Patent: US 10,602,991 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 378/86
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/032 Transmission computed tomography [CT]
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/037 Emission tomography
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/06 Diaphragms
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/4007 characterised by using a plurality of source units
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/4071 Pencil beams
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/4085 Cone-beams
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/4233 using matrix detectors
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/4241 using energy resolving detectors, e.g. photon counting
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/4291 the detector being combined with a grid or grating
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/481 involving the use of contrast agents
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/483 involving scattered radiation
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/50 specially adapted for specific body parts; specially adapted for specific clinical applications
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/504 for diagnosis of blood vessels, e.g. by angiography
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/507 for determination of haemodynamic parameters, e.g. perfusion CT
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 5/1048 Monitoring, verifying, controlling systems and methods
• CPC Class Codes: G21K 1/025 using multiple collimators, e.g. Bucky screens; other devices for eliminating undesired or dispersed radiation

Abstract

An apparatus to examine a target in a patient includes an x-ray source configured to deliver a first x-ray beam towards the target, a device having an array of openings, the device located at an angle less than 180 degrees relative to a beam path of the first x-ray beam to receive a second x-ray beam resulted from an interaction between the first x-ray beam and the target, and a detector aligned with the device, the detector located at an angle less than 180 degrees relative to the beam path of the first x-ray beam to receive a part of the second x-ray beam from the device that exits through the openings at the device.

Claims

1. An apparatus to examine a target, comprising:

an x-ray source configured to deliver a first x-ray beam towards the target;

a device having an array of openings, the device located at an angle less than 180 degrees relative to a beam path of the first x-ray beam to receive a second x-ray beam resulted from an interaction between the first x-ray beam and the target; and

a detector aligned with the device, the detector located at an angle less than 180 degrees relative to the beam path of the first x-ray beam to receive the second x-ray beam from the device after the second x-ray beam has exited through the openings of the device.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the detector comprises a first detector element and a second detector element, the first detector element corresponding with a first one of the openings, the second detector element corresponding with a second one of the openings;

and

wherein the first detector element is configured to provide spectrum data in response to the first beam interacting with a first part of the target, and the second detector element is configured to provide second spectrum data in response to the first beam interacting with a second a second part of the target.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a processor configured to determine examination data based on signals generated by the detector, the examination data representing fluid build up, fluid retention, fluid wash out, rate of fluid build up, or rate of fluid wash out.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a processor for reconstructing a volumetric image of the target using signals generated by the detector.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the angle is a value that is anywhere between 30 degrees and 170 degrees.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the second beam comprises a photo absorption component and a Compton scatter component.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a collimator between the x-ray source and the target.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the detector comprises a photo spectrum sensitive detector.

9. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein each of the openings has an elongated shape.

10. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the openings are arranged in a plurality of rows.

11. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein each of the plurality of rows has multiple ones of the openings.

12. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the device comprises a plurality of spaced apart plates that define the array of openings.

13. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first x-ray beam comprises a cone beam.

14. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first x-ray beam comprises a first fan beam for examining parts of the target that are in a first plane.

15. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the x-ray source is configured to provide a second fan beam for examining parts of the target that are in a second plane.

16. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first x-ray beam comprises a first pencil beam for examining parts of the target that are along a first line.

17. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the x-ray source is configured to provide a second pencil beam for examining parts of the target that are along a second line, the first line and the second line defining a plane.

18. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the x-ray source is configured to provide a third pencil beam for examining parts of the target that are along a third line.

19. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a processor configured to process information from the detector related to Compton peak and/or one or more k-peak(s), to obtain one or more properties of the target.

20. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a processor configured to process signals from the detector to determine information regarding a density of agent attached to a cancer site, information regarding angiogenesis, information regarding hypoxia, information regarding radiation treatment effectiveness, information regarding pathological functional marker(s), information regarding an identifier of cancer malignancy, information regarding an identifier of cancer growth, information regarding an identifier of cancer growth rate, information regarding a progress of radiation treatment, information regarding lack of a progress of radiation treatment, information regarding tissue property, or information regarding a property of an environment surrounding an agent in tissue.

21. A method to image a target, comprising:

directing a first x-ray beam generated from an x-ray source towards the target, wherein a second x-ray beam is generated by an interaction of the first x-ray beam with the target;

detecting the second x-ray beam using a detector that is placed at less than 180 degrees relative to a path of the first x-ray beam; and

obtaining at least one quantum property for the target using the detected second x-ray beam.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein the act of obtaining the at least one quantum property comprises obtaining first energy spectrum data for a first part of the target and second energy spectrum data for a second part of the target.

23. The method of claim 21, wherein the second x-ray beam comprises a first portion and a second portion, further comprising using a device to collimate the second x-ray beam so that the first portion of the second x-ray beam is allowed to travel towards a first part of the detector, and the second portion of the second x-ray beam is allowed to travel towards a second part of the detector.

24. The method of claim 21, further comprising determine examination data based on signals generated by the detector, the examination data representing fluid build up, fluid retention, fluid wash out, rate of fluid build up, or rate of fluid wash out.

25. The method of claim 21, further reconstructing a volumetric image of the target using signals generated by the detector.

26. The method of claim 21, wherein the angle is a value that is anywhere between 30 degrees and 170 degrees.

27. The method of claim 21, wherein the second x-ray beam comprises a photo absorption component and a Compton scatter component.

28. The method of claim 21, further comprising collimating the first x-ray beam before the first x-ray beam reaches the target.

29. The method of claim 21, wherein the detector comprises a photo spectrum sensitive detector.

30. The method of claim 21, wherein the first x-ray beam comprises a cone beam.

31. The method of claim 21, wherein the first x-ray beam comprises a first fan beam, the first beam interacting with a first part, a second part, and a third part of the target to produce a first portion, a second portion, and a third portion, respectively, of the second x-ray beam;

wherein the first part, the second part, and the third part of the target are in a first plane.

32. The method of claim 31, further comprising directing a second fan beam towards the target for examining parts of the target that are in a second plane.

33. The method of claim 21, wherein the first x-ray beam comprises a first pencil beam, the first pencil beam interacting with a first part of the target to produce a first portion of the second x-ray beam, and interacting with a second part of the target to produce a second portion of the second x-ray beam;

wherein the first part and the second part of the target are along a first line.

34. The method of claim 33, further comprising directing a second pencil beam towards the target for examining parts of the target along a second line.

35. The method of claim 34, further comprising directing a third pencil beam towards the target for examining parts of the target along a third line.

36. The method of claim 21, further comprising using the at least one quantum property to determine temporal information regarding the target.

37. The method of claim 21, wherein the at least one quantum property comprises energy spectrum data, and the method further comprises determining information related to Compton peak and/or one or more k-peak(s) from the energy spectrum data to obtain one or more properties of the target.

38. The method of claim 21, further comprising processing signals from the detector to determine information regarding a density of agent attached to a cancer site, information regarding angiogenesis, information regarding hypoxia, information regarding radiation treatment effectiveness, information regarding pathological functional marker(s), information regarding an identifier of cancer malignancy, information regarding an identifier of cancer growth, information regarding an identifier of cancer growth rate, information regarding a progress of radiation treatment, information regarding lack of a progress of radiation treatment, information regarding tissue property, or information regarding a property of an environment surrounding an agent in tissue.

39. An apparatus for determining a characteristic of a target, comprising:

a processing unit configured to;

receive first quantum data from a first detector element of a detector, the first quantum data corresponding to a first part of the target,

receive second quantum data from a second detector element of a detector, the second quantum data corresponding to a second part of the target,

identify first k-alpha peak, first k-beta peak, and first Compton scatter peak from the first quantum data,

identify second k-alpha peak, second k-beta peak, and second Compton scatter peak from the second quantum data, and

calculate a parameter using the first k-alpha peak, the first k-beta peak, the first Compton scatter peak, the second k-alpha peak, the second k-beta peak, the second Compton scatter peak, or a combination thereof.

40. The apparatus of claim 39, wherein the processing unit is configured to calculate the parameter by determining a ratio using the first k-alpha peak and the first k-beta peak.

41. The apparatus of claim 39, wherein the calculated parameter indicates fluid build up, fluid retention, fluid wash out, rate of fluid build up, or rate of fluid wash out.

42. The apparatus of claim 39, wherein the calculated parameter indicates a density of an agent in the target.