Radiological Physics Center - Introduction

Introduction

The Radiological Physics Center 1 (RPC) has been funded by the National Cancer Institute (NCI) continuously since 1968 to provide quality auditing of dosimetry practices at institutions participating in NCI cooperative clinical trials. The RPC was formed at the urging of radiation physicists through the American Association of Physicists in Medicine (AAPM), and radiation oncologists through the Committee on Radiation Therapy Studies. The AAPM Radiation Therapy Committee has been, and continues to be, the scientific advisory body to the RPC.

Located at M. D. Anderson Cancer Center since its inception, the RPC was first led by Robert J. Shalek, Ph.D., who served as Director from 1968 until 1985. William F. Hanson, Ph.D., became Director in 1985 and served until August 2001. Geoffrey S. Ibbott, Ph.D., be came Director in 2001 and served until September 2010. David Followill, Ph.D. is the current Director.

The primary responsibility of the RPC is to assure the NCI and the cooperative clinical trial groups that all participating institutions have the equipment, personnel, and procedures necessary to administer radiation doses that are clinically comparable to those of other participating institutions. The monitoring tools used include on-site dosimetry reviews; remote auditing tools, including thermoluminescent dosimeter (TLD) / Optically Stimulated Luminescence dosimeter (OSLD) and anthropomorphic phantoms; and review of benchmarks and actual protocol patient treatments. These monitoring tools are aimed at improving clinical trial patient dosimetry such that the uncertainty in the radiation doses delivered is minimized.

The historical development of cooperative clinical trial groups, the creation of the RPC, and the development of group specific quality assurance offices, have all been interconnected. The following is an overview of the main events in this chronicle.