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A '''multileaf collimator''' ('''MLC''') is a [[collimator]] or beam-limiting device that is made of individual "leaves" of a high [[atomic number]]ed material, usually [[tungsten]], that can move independently in and out of the path of a [[external beam radiotherapy|radiotherapy beam]] in order to shape it and vary its intensity.
MLCs are used in external beam radiotherapy to provide conformal shaping of beams. Specifically, [[
The MLC has improved rapidly since its inception and the first use of leaves to shape structures in 1965 <ref>{{cite journal | last=Takahashi | first=S | title=Conformation radiotherapy. Rotation techniques as applied to radiography and radiotherapy of cancer. | journal=Acta Radiologica: Diagnosis | year=1965 | issn=0567-8056 | pmid=5879987 | page=Suppl 242:1+}}</ref> to modern day operation and use. MLCs are now widely used and have become an integral part of any radiotherapy department. MLCs were primarily used for conformal radiotherapy, and have allowed the cost-effective implementation of conformal treatment with significant time saving,<ref>{{cite journal | last1=Brewster | first1=Linda | last2=Mohan | first2=Radhe | last3=Mageras | first3=Gig | last4=Burman | first4=Chandra | last5=Leibel | first5=Steven | last6=Fuks | first6=Zvi | title=Three dimensional conformal treatment planning with multileaf collimators | journal=International Journal of Radiation Oncology, Biology, Physics | publisher=Elsevier BV | volume=33 | issue=5 | date=1995-12-01 | issn=0360-3016 | pmid=7493834 | doi=10.1016/0360-3016(95)02061-6 | pages=1081–1089}}</ref> and also have been adapted for use for IMRT treatments. For conformal radiotherapy the MLC allows conformal shaping of the beam to match the borders of the target tumour. For intensity modulated treatments the leaves of a MLC can be moved across the field to create IMRT distributions (MLCs really provide a [[fluence]] modulation rather than intensity modulation).
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