The Correlation of Regional Lung Ventilation and Gas Transfer to Red Blood Cells: Implications for Functional-Avoidance Radiation Therapy Planning

Functionally-guided radiation therapy (RT) planning using 4-Dimensional Computed Tomography (4DCT)-derived ventilation is gaining momentum. However, an important question remains: is regional lung ventilation a good surrogate for end-to-end lung function, i.e., gas transfer to Red Blood Cells (RBCs). We acquired functional image data for N=17 human subjects, using state-of-the-art hyperpolarized (HP)-129Xe Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI). We analyzed the correlation of ventilation and RBC transfer, and calculated the similarity of planning optimization structures created from each.

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