Helical tomotherapy® is a safe and feasible technique for total scalp irradiation

Abstract

Angiosarcoma of the scalp is a rare aggressive tumor that affects elderly patients. Chemoradiation is the treatment of choice for multicentric and extensive disease. The shape of the scalp represents a dosimetric challenge in terms of achieving a homogeneous concave dose distribution with coverage of the entire target volume and an acceptable organs-at-risk sparing. We report a case of an 81-year-old man with a multifocal angiosarcoma of the scalp treated with Helical TomoTherapy® (Accuray Inc., Sunnyvale, CA, USA) intensity modulated radiotherapy. This technique allows precise and daily verifiable coverage of the target keeping the dose to the organs at risk within the constraints.