TestDose

TestDose simulates scintigraphic imaging protocols and computes absorbed doses using Monte Carlo modeling to assess biases in clinical dosimetry protocols.

Key Features:

• Virtual Patient Generation: Employs functional segmentation of anthropomorphic models, including 4D XCAT and ICRP 110, to generate virtual patients.
• Pharmacokinetic Modeling: Models radiopharmaceutical biodistribution across defined compartments at multiple time points.
• Monte Carlo Simulation Integration: Integrates the Gate Monte Carlo toolkit to simulate scintigraphic images and calculate absorbed doses in volumes of interest.
• Automated Workflow: Automatically generates Gate command files and simulates each compartment only once, applying pharmacokinetic weighting to reuse outputs.
• Image and Dosimetry Computation: Aggregates compartment projections based on specified parameters to produce final images and stores emission data to create input files matched to the virtual patient model and pharmacokinetics.
• Modular Framework: Provides a modular framework adaptable to various scintigraphic imaging protocols and voxel- or organ-based dosimetry, with potential extension to positron emission tomography (PET).

Scientific Applications:

• Octreoscan™ therapeutic protocol simulation: Simulates "step and shoot" SPECT acquisitions at multiple post-injection times to reproduce clinical imaging protocols.
• Dosimetry based on Octreoscan™ kinetics: Computes dosimetry from simulated Octreoscan™ biodistribution to support personalized treatment assessment.

Methodology:

Functional segmentation of anthropomorphic models (4D XCAT, ICRP 110); pharmacokinetic compartmental modeling over multiple time points; generation of Gate command files; Monte Carlo simulation with Gate to produce compartment projections and absorbed dose estimates; weighting of single-compartment simulations by pharmacokinetics to aggregate images; storage of emission data and creation of input files for dosimetry.