Intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT), one of the most important developments in radiation oncology in the past 25 years, involves technology to deliver radiation to tumors in the right location, quantity and time. Unavoidable irradiation of surrounding normal tissues is distributed so as to preserve their function. The achievements and future directions in the field are grouped in the three sections of the book, each suitable for supporting a teaching course. Part 1 contains topical reviews of the basic principles of IMRT, part 2 describes advanced techniques such as image-guided and biologically based approaches, and part 3 focuses on investigation of IMRT to improve outcome at various cancer sites.

Foundations: Clinical rationale of IMRT

The physical potential of IMRT
Imaging the Lymph Nodes: CT, MRI, PET
Morphology imaging
IMRT plan optimization
Practical IMRT planning
IMRT Dose calculation
IMRT delivery techniques
Biological considerations of IMRT planning and delivery
Image guided patient setup
IMRT QA (European perspective)
IMRT QA (US perspective)
Advanced Image Guided and Biologically Driven Techniques: Functional and biological imaging (PET, SPECT, MRI-MRS)
Tumor imaging for dose painting
Biological/functional-image guided optimization
Biological optimization
Image guided patient setup (and immobilization)
Adaptive IMRT (Linac)
Adaptive IMRT (Tomotherapy)
4D CT
4D TP concepts
Gating and tracking
Clinical: Paranasal sinus
Oropharynx
Nasopharynx
Larynx
CNS, Skull Base and Paraspinal Tumors
Chest
Breast
GI/Abdomen
Prostate
GYN
Combination of IMRT with other modalities
High precision.