IN-BEAM PET IMAGING FOR THE CONTROL OF HEAVY-ION TUMOR-THERAPY

A method for the in-situ control of the heavy-ion tumour therapy by me ans of positron emission tomography is introduced. This method is foun ded on the measurement of the dynamic spatial distributions of beta(+) -emitters generated by nuclear fragmentation during the irradiation an d their relation to the dose. In order to study this relationship and to derive the dose distribution from the measured beta(+)-activity dis tribution, a framework of model calculations is used. Results of phant om experiments with C-12 ion beams will be presented, demonstrating go od agreement between experiment and calculation as well as the possibi lities and limits of the PET-technique for treatment plan verification and beam monitoring.