Automatic contour recognition in three-dimensional treatment planning

The rapid abstraction of anatomical contours from CT data is a useful and perhaps necessary component for 3-D treatment planning. The need to visualize adequate irradiation to the full 3-D extent of treatment volume can be fulfilled with a display of reconstructed surfaces. The ability to do this on a routine basis calls for, as much as possible, automatic contouring techniques. The approach thus far appears to achieve this end