| Radiotherapy has existed as a clinical medical procedure since as early as 1900, and has become an essential component of modern hospitals. It is predicted that, sometime between the years 2010 and 2020, the number of patients receiving radiation therapy during their initial treatment is expected to rise by 22% from 470,000 per year to 575,000 per year Due to the potential for harm in radiotherapy, quality assurance is an essential element at every stage of modern clinical workflow. The quality and use of time in QA procedures and checks is an important issue that has significant impact on both practice and research in the field of radiotherapy. This thesis documents the results of development and results of tools addressing that question. While the motivation for radiotherapy QA is principally about improving quality of patient care, and developing radiotherapy research tools, we also discuss the relevance of QA to radiotherapy malpractice lawsuits and related financial costs. We show that in the treatment plan check performed by the medical physicist---also known as the second check or physics check---a substantial fraction (~33%) of the average time is spent on non-physics related analysis. We also demonstrate the development and implementation of a web-based system, referred to as PlanTracker within this thesis, to track the status of the plan. This thesis concludes with further developments being considered as an outgrowth of this system. |
