Decision support tool for choosing treatment plans

A computer product comprising a non-transitory computer readable medium storing a plurality of instructions that when executed control a computer system to select among a plurality of treatment plan types for treating a tumor of a first patient, the instructions comprising:

• receiving information about the first patient;
• analyzing the information to determine a set of input values, the input values including characteristics of the tumor;
• selecting, from a plurality of dose prediction models, a dose prediction model corresponding to a particular treatment plan type;
• using the dose prediction model to predict a dose distribution of radiation to be provided to the tumor for the particular treatment plan based on the characteristics of the tumor, the dose distribution specifying a variation of radiation dose within the tumor;
• determining one or more dose input values from the predicted dose distribution for the particular treatment plan type;
• for each of the plurality of treatment plan types:
• identifying an estimation function associated with the treatment plan type, the estimation function generated based on outcomes of other patients using the treatment plan type, and
• predicting a quality of the treatment plan type by using the set of input values with the identified estimation function to calculate one or more outcome values, the set of input values including the one or more dose input values for the particular treatment plan type, and by determining a quality score based on the one or more outcome values, the set of input values including the one or more dose input values;
• and
• identifying a first treatment plan type having an optimal quality score to a user of the computer system, the first treatment plan type including providing radiation to the first patient;
• generating a first treatment plan of the first treatment plan type based on the set of input values and the plurality of outcome values, the first treatment plan including instructions for controlling a treatment head in order to treat the tumor of the first patient;
• and
• providing, by the treatment head coupled with a radiation source, radiation at pre-defined angles and pre-defined doses to specific portions of a treatment area of the first patient according to the first treatment plan, wherein the treatment head is controlled by a control unit according to the instructions in the first treatment plan.

A radiation therapy system comprising:

• a radiation therapy device including:
• a rotatable gantry including a treatment head and a multileaf collimator, wherein the multileaf collimator is configured to shape a radiation beam emitted from the treatment head;
• and
• a control unit configured to:
• control the rotation of the rotatable gantry,
• control emission of the radiation beam from the treatment head, and
• control the shape of the radiation beam via the multileaf collimator;
• wherein the radiation therapy device is configured to:
• receive a first treatment plan of a first treatment plan type;
• and
• provide the radiation beam at pre-defined angles and pre-defined doses to specific portions of a treatment area of a first patient according to instructions in the first treatment plan;
• one or more processors;
• and
• a non-transitory computer readable medium for controlling the one or more processors, the computer readable medium storing a plurality of instructions that when executed control the one or more processors to select among a plurality of treatment plan types for treating a tumor of the first patient, the instructions comprising:
• receiving information about the first patient;
• analyzing the information to determine a set of input values, the input values including characteristics of the tumor;
• predicting, using a dose prediction model, a dose distribution of radiation to be provided to the tumor based on the characteristics of the tumor, the dose distribution specifying a variation of radiation dose within the tumor;
• determining one or more dose input values from the predicted dose distribution;
• for each of the plurality of treatment plan types:
• identifying an estimation function associated with the treatment plan type, the estimation function generated based on outcomes of other patients using the treatment plan type, and
• predicting a quality of the treatment plan type by using the set of input values with the identified estimation function to calculate, by the computer system, a plurality of outcome values and determining a quality score based on the plurality of outcome values, the set of input values including the one or more dose input values;
• identifying the first treatment plan type having an optimal quality score, the first treatment plan type including providing radiation to the first patient;
• generating the first treatment plan of the first treatment plan type based on the set of input values and the plurality of outcome values, the first treatment plan including instructions for controlling the rotation of the rotatable gantry, the emission of the radiation beam from the treatment head, and the shape of the radiation beam via the multileaf collimator in order to treat the tumor of the first patient according to the predicted dose distribution;
• and
• providing the first treatment plan from the one or more processors to the control unit of the radiation therapy device.