Hendees Radiation Therapy Physics

Article Type: Book Review

Accepted Article
Mail id: [email protected]

Hendee’s Radiation Therapy Physics, 4th Edition. Todd Pawlicki, Daniel J. Scanderbeg,
George Starkschall, Authors. Wiley-Blackwell, New Jersey, 2016. Hardcover 352pp. Price:
$159.95. ISBN: 978-0-470-37651-5.

DESCRIPTION
This is the 4th edition of a book on the physics of radiation therapy that covers basic
principles and new technologies in the field and how these apply to the clinical practice. It is
a well-referenced and easy to read text. The text is designed as an alternative or supplement
to other well-established books in the field of radiotherapy physics. In addition, the authors
have made an extra effort to provide a concise summary of the objectives for every chapter.
They even set aside a chapter on patient safety and quality improvement.
PURPOSE
The authors have successfully addressed most common aspects of radiation therapy physics
from an educational and practical perspective. They provided all the necessary information
that should be useful for radiation oncology residents, undergraduate medical physics
students, medical dosimetrists and technology students. For those interested in more detailed
or advanced treatments, the references listed at the end of each chapter are very useful.
AUDIENCE
This text is primarily directed toward those who want to learn the basic physics along with
the most updated technologies and methods in radiotherapy physics. In my opinion, the text
can serve as a supplemental reference to teaching materials for radiation oncology residents,
medical dosimetry students, and medical physics residents. Or, it can be used as an in-depth
teaching text for several other topics. For practitioners in the field of radiotherapy, it can be a
great resource for those who need to practice problem solving and examination preparation.
Thus, I would strongly recommend this book to any medical physics department, radiation
therapy technology training program, dosimetry program and medical residency program in
radiation oncology.
This article has been accepted for publication and undergone full peer review but has not
been through the copyediting, typesetting, pagination and proofreading process, which may
lead to differences between this version and the Version of Record. Please cite this article as
doi: 10.1002/mp.12427
This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
CONTENT / FEATURES
The contents of the book are laid out in 20 chapters and one appendix. All chapters include
Accepted Article
black and white graphs and figures to assist the reader. In the middle of the book, the authors
have placed 15 color plates that correspond to figures already embedded in the text. As a
reader, I found these plates to be very useful and well designed. There are numerous tables
containing data pertinent to the text, which can be used in problem solving. Another useful
feature, are calculated examples in almost every paragraph. These examples make it easier
for the reader to understand the topic. I found the structure of the text valuable for review and
for examination preparation. At the end of each chapter, the authors have presented a concise
set of summary problems and a rich bibliography. The chapters start from traditional topics of
radiation therapy physics and extend to new technologies and modalities. It is worth noting
that the authors have included a chapter on patient safety and quality improvement as part of
the quality assurance for a radiotherapy department.
Chapters 1 through 3 cover the basic physics of atomic nuclei, radioactivity and interactions
of radiation with matter, in a review fashion. Chapters 4 through 6 cover radiation producing
machines; measurements and detection methods and systems; and clinical beam calibration.
Chapters 7 through 9 address photon-beam dosimetry, calculation of dose and monitor units,
and external beam treatment planning. It is important to mention that Chapter 9 has
paragraphs on inverse planning optimization, biological modeling, and special modality units,
such as, tomotherapy and cyberknife devices. Chapters 10 through 12 present the basics of
imaging, imaging for radiotherapy, imaging for tumor targeting, and image-guided and
adaptive radiotherapy. Chapters 13 and 14 cover computer systems and radiotherapy
informatics (A topic that not often found in radiotherapy physics text books!). Special
procedures are covered in Chapters 15 through 17 with proton therapy physics, brachytherapy
physics, and brachytherapy treatment planning and dose calculation. The last three Chapters
(18 through 20) cover radiation protection, quality assurance, and patient safety and quality
improvement. The only appendix provides answers to selected problems.
In my opinion, the following important topics are missing from this book: electron beam
dosimetry, electron beam planning and electron special dosimetry topics. Electron beam
treatments are still part of radiotherapy practice and need to be included and emphasized for
educational and teaching purposes. Another minor omission, is other special procedures,
such as, total body irradiation and stereotactic radiosurgery/radiotherapy.
ASSESSMENT / COMPARISON
The text takes a modern, up-to-date approach to the application of radiotherapy physics and
planning that will primarily assist radiation therapy medical residents, medical physics
residents, medical dosimetrists and technologists in building their background knowledge and
understanding of why and how of activities in the clinical environment. Without hesitation, I
recommend the text as another “modern-view” teaching tool for trainees and practitioners in
the field.

Reviewed by Dimitris Mihailidis, Ph.D.
Dimitris Mihailidis is the Clinical Associate Professor and Chief of the Photon Physics and Dosimetry at
the University of Pennsylvania, Radiation Oncology Department. He has served as a member of the
Accepted Article
Editorial Board and the Book Review Editor for the journal of Medical Physics for over 12 years. His
research interests include modern approaches in radiotherapy and clinical implementation of new
technologies. He is also a teaching contributor of the University of Pennsylvania medical physics
residency and graduate training programs.

Hendees Radiation Therapy Physics

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Hendees Radiation Therapy Physics

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Hendees Radiation Therapy Physics

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

What topics are covered in the book?

What features does the book include to aid understanding?

Article Type: Book Review

This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

You might also like