This newsletter is for the express purpose of entertaining and educating
of my immediate male relatives and friends. The information provided is
believed to be accurate but it is always wise to check with your own doctor(s).
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to Ranger BoB |Remember, I am not a doctor, just an inquisitive patient.
During the set up process my mid section was CAT scanned. From the CAT scan this 3D model was assembled. You are looking obliquely at the front of my mid section, from the waist down to the beginning of my legs.
The 3D model shows my external self (grey-brown) and some of my internal organs: red = prostate, purple on the right side of the image (my left side) is my hip prothesis (mechanical hip) and the rod that extends down into my femur. The purple blob, on the left in the image, is the head of my healthy right femur.
The very light tan behind the prostate is the large intestine/rectum. The light blue at the top is the small intestine. In between, the yellowish blob adjacent to the top of the prostate, that's the bladder (filled with dye for better visibility).
Scroll down for more images.
This is a lateral slice looking from my feet toward
my head.
My mechanical left hip (right side of the image) is sending off lots of reflected rays. In the center is the prostate, outlined with a turquoise line. It looks like a circle flattened on the bottom. The black oval just below the prostate is large intestine.
The pair of lines, yellow and dark blue, outside of the prostate indicate the extent of the margin that is being treated during boost. The prostate moves around a bit due to my breathing and treating a slightly larger area insures that it is treated no matter how it wants to jiggle.
The outer blue line (contour) is the 50% dose line (if I remember all of Dave's explanation correctly). That means that areas outside of that contour are getting much less radiation.
This is a slice from head to toe about half way from back to front. You are looking from my back toward my front (left hip on the right side of the picture).
Again the turquoise contour is the outline of the prostate. The pair of lines (black and red) define the outer edge of the treatment margin. The next contour (dark blue) is the 50% contour.
The light (white) wing like elements on the left in the picture are parts of my right femur and the hip socket in the pelvis.
This image is a little disorienting. Its a slice from front (top) back (bottom). You can see the spine coming down in the lower left corner and ending near the large intestine (black shape).
So this is a side view of the prostate (outlined in turquoise), the blabber (larger white shape) filled with dye. The vertical white shape to the left of the prostate is dye in the urethra below the prostate.
Again the edge of the treatment area is the double line (black and red) and the blue line indicates the 50% contour.
This is the 3D model again, this time looking from the feet toward the head. Prostate in red, purple hip parts, light tan large intestine/rectum, light blue small intestine, and yellow bladder.
What's new in this view are the outlines of the radiation paths or columns. These are the 5 cylinder like figures outlined in green. They define the 5 angles from which I am being treated and how they are focused on the prostate.
Questions, send them along, I will try to find the answers.
