NCICT Release History

Chronological technical record of NCICT releases, calculation updates, maintenance changes, and compatibility notes.

NCICT Version History

Public release and maintenance record for the National Cancer Institute dosimetry system for Computed Tomography.

Latest update: May 2, 2026 Latest official release: 4.20260415 Record begins: 2011

2026

May 2, 2026

GUI and batch processing

  • Highlighted scan start and end lines in bold on hover.
  • Updated GUI Batch calculations to use the same calculation workflow as the API.
  • Updated GUI Batch CSV loading to use the same parameter names as the API JSON input.
  • Removed required phantom-group and dose_target inputs; NCICT now infers patient, fetus, or mother dose from the age format and whether height is provided.
  • Updated the recommended Batch CSV parameter order so scan start and end appear after WED.
  • Added Batch CSV support for custom mA profiles by reading numeric cells from the custom_ma column through the end of the row when tcm_strength is -1.
  • Added support for week-based pregnant phantom input in Batch CSV, such as 38wk.
  • Added closest-phantom matching in batch mode using age, height, weight, and WED.

API

  • Added water-equivalent diameter (WED)-based phantom selection.
  • Added internal handling for missing optional patient parameters, including height, weight, and WED.
  • Added slice-specific custom_ma input when tcm_strength is set to -1.
  • Standardized JSON input keys: age, sex, height, weight, wed, start, end, kvp, tcm_strength, head_body, and ctdivol.
  • Removed required phantom-group and dose_target inputs; patient, fetus, and mother dose targets are inferred automatically.
  • Added closest-phantom matching based on user-provided age, height, weight, and WED.
  • Added scan range validation after landmark conversion.
  • Improved API error responses for invalid input.

April 24, 2026

  • Corrected displayed DLP values that did not match CTDIvol multiplied by scan length.

April 15, 2026 — Official Release 4.20260415

Phantom library

  • Added 9 pediatric phantoms, bringing the size-dependent phantom library to 360 phantoms.
  • Implemented detailed cardiac substructure models for all 360 size-dependent phantoms.

Dose calculation

  • Recalculated the full dose library for 360 phantoms using the new cardiac models and six x-ray spectra.
  • Adopted the ICRP Publication 133 skeletal dose response function.
  • Adopted water-equivalent diameter (WED) for SSDE, calculated per slice from DICOM-converted voxel phantoms.
  • Regenerated TCM profiles for all phantoms using 16 cm and 32 cm reference CTDI phantoms.
  • Added nCTDIw values from CTDI survey data for Siemens X.cite, Definition Edge, Definition AS+, Definition Flash, Force, and Edge Plus; GE Revolution CT; and United Imaging uCT 760, uCT 820, and uCT 960+ scanners.
  • Upgraded batch calculations to support exact height and weight selection of the 12 ICRP reference phantoms and cardiac substructure dose output for all 360 phantoms.

User interface

  • Recolored 3D mesh phantoms and regenerated high-resolution phantom images.
  • Enabled direct phantom map selection.
  • Redesigned the GUI for improved visibility and usability.
  • Replaced the Batch Mode menu with a dedicated button for improved accessibility.
  • Allowed TCM strength to be entered directly in the text field.

Backend redesign

  • Converted dose, TCM, and phantom image libraries from CSV to binary format for faster calculations.
  • Redesigned the CTDI library for improved extensibility.

2024

December 16, 2024

  • Fixed an issue where the Batch Run menu did not function correctly.

December 15, 2024 — Official Release 3.0.20241215

  • Added in-application links to the user manual and technical support forum (now NCI Dose Tools Discussions).

June 26, 2024

  • Corrected an x-ray spectrum index mismatch between 100 and 120 kVp.

February 29, 2024

  • Corrected TCM profile selection for body phantoms.

January 25, 2024

  • Corrected effective diameter and SSDE updates when the scan range changes.

January 24, 2024 — Official Release 3.0.20240124

  • Added head CTDI phantom-based TCM profiles to better simulate pediatric CT examinations.
  • Removed muscle layers from frontal and rear phantom views to improve visualization of internal anatomy.

2023

April 28, 2023

  • Revised frontal and rear views of ICRP phantoms.

2022

December 14, 2022 — Official Release 3.0.20221123

November 23, 2022

  • Published NCICT 2.0: Lee et al., “CT organ dose calculator size adaptive for pediatric and adult patients,” Biomedical Physics & Engineering Express, 8:065020 (2022).

2021

November 23, 2021

  • Fixed a crash caused by blank lines in batch input files, often introduced during CSV editing in Excel.

November 20, 2021

  • Displayed the tube current profile per image slice alongside phantom visualization.
  • Displayed “Average CTDIvol” when TCM strength is greater than 0.
  • Displayed “Custom CTDIvol” when CTDIvol is entered manually.
  • Fixed multiple TCM-related issues in the batch module.

October 27, 2021

  • Made height and weight fields read-only for body size-dependent phantoms; body size is adjusted using arrow controls.
  • Enabled batch input for pregnant women phantoms and fetal phantoms.
  • Added User Manual and User Forum menu items under the Help menu (the forum is now NCI Dose Tools Discussions).

October 21, 2021

  • Derived tube current (mA) from custom CTDIvol values and enabled TCM for the derived mA profile.

September 15, 2021

  • Fixed an issue where the program stopped when the batch input file was missing.
  • Separated mA and rotation time from mAs to support proper TCM adjustment.
  • Added an mA limit to prevent unrealistically high mA values for obese patients in TCM mode.
  • Disabled TCM when custom CTDIvol is entered.

May 20, 2021

  • Added automatic selection of the best-matching phantom based on patient height and weight in batch mode.

May 13, 2021 — Official Release 3.0.20210513

  • Added batch calculation functionality using ncict_batch_input.csv.
  • Implemented tube current modulation using generic modulation profiles.

March 7, 2021

  • Added effective diameter calculation for pregnant women phantoms.

2020

March 12, 2020 — Official Release 3.0.20200312

  • Improved scan range dragging speed in the Windows version.

2019

December 5, 2019

  • Added maternal organ dose calculations in NCICT 3.0.20191205.
  • Presented NCICT at RSNA 2019.

March 1, 2019

  • Added eight pregnant phantoms with fetal models.
  • Enabled fetal organ dose calculations.
  • Released NCICT 3.0 build 20190301.

2018

November 18, 2018 — Official Release 2.0.20181118

  • Added 98 adult phantoms, completing the full set of 351 phantoms.
  • Presented NCICTX at AAPM 2018 and renamed the software to NCICT.

2016

April 1, 2016

  • Added 72 adult and 181 pediatric phantoms in NCICTX 20160401.
  • Presented NCICTX at AAPM 2016.

2015

December 1, 2015

  • Published NCICT 1.0 in the Journal of Radiological Protection.
  • Presented NCICT at RSNA 2015.

2014

December 1, 2014 — Official Release 1.0.20141201

  • Replaced the original NCI phantoms with ICRP pediatric and adult phantoms.

2012

April 18, 2012

  • Translated the MATLAB version to Visual Basic 6.0 in NCICT 1.0.20120418.
  • Implemented the batch routine for automated calculations.
  • Initiated public beta testing under a non-official data agreement.

2011

May 17, 2011

  • Released the initial NCICT 1.0 version based on NCI phantoms and the MATLAB framework.