A Statistical Framework for Forecasting Cumulative Dose Metrics in Adaptive Radiotherapy

Fuente: arXiv
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Auteurs principaux: Boyd, Robert, Tomé, Wolfgang A.
Format: Preprint
Publié: 2026
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author Boyd, Robert
Tomé, Wolfgang A.
author_facet Boyd, Robert
Tomé, Wolfgang A.
contents Adaptive radiation therapy (ART) seeks to maintain accurate dose delivery by monitoring anatomical changes during treatment and modifying plans accordingly, yet commonly used approaches for estimating cumulative dose rely on heuristic, deterministic assumptions and do not quantify uncertainty in future dose delivery. We present a statistical framework based on simple exponential smoothing (SES) to forecast cumulative dose metrics probabilistically throughout the course of ART. Adapting lead time SES methods from inventory control, we model cumulative dose trajectories and derive closed form prediction intervals and threshold exceedance probabilities for clinically relevant dose metrics. The framework was evaluated using per fraction dose volume histogram data recomputed on daily volumetric imaging for 32 prostate and 19 head and neck patients, allowing assessment of empirical interval coverage, interval width, and adaptive decision support performance. SES based forecasts demonstrated robust coverage probabilities across a range of smoothing parameters and provided appropriately scaled uncertainty estimates for remaining course cumulative dose. In addition, a difference based formulation enabled in course estimation of the probability that an adaptive plan would improve delivered dose metrics relative to the original plan. This SES based forecasting approach offers a computationally efficient and statistically grounded method for anticipating cumulative dose delivery, supporting quantitative, individualized adaptive monitoring and evidence based replanning decisions within routine ART workflows.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2603_01130
institution arXiv
publishDate 2026
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle A Statistical Framework for Forecasting Cumulative Dose Metrics in Adaptive Radiotherapy
Boyd, Robert
Tomé, Wolfgang A.
Medical Physics
Adaptive radiation therapy (ART) seeks to maintain accurate dose delivery by monitoring anatomical changes during treatment and modifying plans accordingly, yet commonly used approaches for estimating cumulative dose rely on heuristic, deterministic assumptions and do not quantify uncertainty in future dose delivery. We present a statistical framework based on simple exponential smoothing (SES) to forecast cumulative dose metrics probabilistically throughout the course of ART. Adapting lead time SES methods from inventory control, we model cumulative dose trajectories and derive closed form prediction intervals and threshold exceedance probabilities for clinically relevant dose metrics. The framework was evaluated using per fraction dose volume histogram data recomputed on daily volumetric imaging for 32 prostate and 19 head and neck patients, allowing assessment of empirical interval coverage, interval width, and adaptive decision support performance. SES based forecasts demonstrated robust coverage probabilities across a range of smoothing parameters and provided appropriately scaled uncertainty estimates for remaining course cumulative dose. In addition, a difference based formulation enabled in course estimation of the probability that an adaptive plan would improve delivered dose metrics relative to the original plan. This SES based forecasting approach offers a computationally efficient and statistically grounded method for anticipating cumulative dose delivery, supporting quantitative, individualized adaptive monitoring and evidence based replanning decisions within routine ART workflows.
title A Statistical Framework for Forecasting Cumulative Dose Metrics in Adaptive Radiotherapy
topic Medical Physics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2603.01130