IOMP Webinar – Why Radiation Oncology Clinical Trials need Medical Physicists

IOMP Webinar – Why Radiation Oncology Clinical Trials need Medical Physicists

, Duration 1 hour

Moderators:

Wayne Beckham, PhD, FCCPM, FCOMP, British Columbia Cancer, Victoria, Canada.
Kwan Hoong Ng, PhD, DABMP, FIOMP, FIUPESM, Universiti Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Speakers:

Søren M. Bentzen, Ph.D., D.M.Sc., FBIR, FASTRO, University of Maryland, Baltimore, USA.
Tomas Kron, OAM, Ph.D., FCCPM, FACPSEM, FIOMP, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Melbourne, Australia.

Abstract: 

Randomized controlled trials (RCT) remain the gold standard for establishing causality between an intervention and a clinical outcome. Leading into an RCT is a hierarchy of early phase clinical trials.  While trial data are typically generated under highly controlled conditions in selected patient populations, the data are prospectively acquired and of high quality which is important to establish a proof-of-concept. Radiation Oncology has a proud history of conducting clinical trials and medical physicists play an essential role in reducing the patient-to-patient variability in exposure that is not attributable to the intervention itself. Some key roles for medical physicists in trials are:

  • Defining the technical details of the radiotherapy approach used in the trial.
  • Independent credentialling of centres participating in the trial.
  • Developing a quality assurance program to ensure collection of high quality data.
  • Supporting (automated) data collection, curation, and evaluation.
  • Developing trial questions that could help to identify the role of techniques or technologies in improving patient outcomes.
  • Many medical physicists are not aware of the importance of trials and the opportunities they provide to create relevant evidence and engage with clinicians. The presentation aims to provide background, examples, and motivation for this.

Learning Objectives:

  • Be aware of different approaches to clinical trial.
  • Understand the importance of clinical trial for generation of evidence in radiation oncology.
  • Appreciate the multiple roles medical physicists can have in clinical trial.
  • Explore where this can result in more than a supporting role.

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