Ultrasound estimation of bladder volume in pelvic radiotherapy (v1)
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Study of reproducibility of ultrasound compared to CT and analysis of CT and CBCT bladder volumes to develop a bladder volume tolerance in radical pelvic radiotherapy patients.
IRAS ID
221629
Contact name
John Gittins
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 11 months, 31 days
Research summary
The size and shape of the bladder affects the position of the prostate or uterus and cervix. At University Hospitals Leicester, patients undergoing treatment of prostate or gynaecological cancer are asked to drink a set amount of water prior to their planning CT and prior to every daily treatment to ensure that their bladder is full. This ensures that the target is in the same position each time and receives the correct amount of dose, and that nearby organs at risk do not receive too much dose. To check that the bladder is full, and that all of the organs are positioned correctly, a type of CT scan is taken before treatment and is visually matched to the CT scan taken during the planning process. CT scans use ionising radiation and the number of these scans should be kept to minimum to reduce radiation exposure. Sometimes the CT scan before treatment shows that the bladder is not full enough, or is too full, compared to the planning CT scan. Therefore treatment cannot go ahead and the patient must empty their bladder and re-start the drinking protocol. This causes unplanned delays in treatment, additional ionising radiation to check setup the second time, and extra burden for the patient.
In this study we will be using a portable ultrasound scanner to see whether this could be used as quick check of the bladder volume before treatment CT scan. This would identify if the setup CT can go ahead, or whether the patient needs to drink more or empty their bladder and start the drinking protocol again. This would reduce the number of repeat CT scans, reduce the time delay, and could eventually be used to modify patient drinking protocols to reduce bladder volume variations, ultimately improving treatment accuracy.
REC name
East of England - Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
17/EE/0217
Date of REC Opinion
25 May 2017
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion