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Benchmarking Modern Day Pencil Beam Scanning Proton Therapy Treatment Times: Insights From Real Time Location Service
Kristen McConnell1,2, Andrew Wroe1,2, Maria Valladares1
1Department of Radiation Oncology, Miami Cancer Institute, Baptist Health South Florida, Miami, Florida, USA.
International Journal of Particle Therapy
|November 10, 2025
Summary
Real-Time Location Systems (RTLS) accurately track patient treatment times in proton therapy. This data provides benchmarks for optimizing clinic operations and improving patient flow in high-volume facilities.
Area of Science:
- Medical Physics
- Radiation Oncology
- Health Informatics
Background:
- Collecting accurate patient treatment time data is difficult with manual methods.
- Predictive models often lack the precision needed for real-world clinical settings.
- Automated tracking systems are needed to overcome these data collection challenges.
Purpose of the Study:
- To leverage Real-Time Location System (RTLS) data for benchmarking treatment times.
- To analyze treatment durations in a high-volume pencil beam scanning proton therapy facility.
- To assess the utility of RTLS in a setting with advanced imaging and setup aids.
Main Methods:
- RTLS data from 12,551 treatment fractions (Jan 2023 - Jul 2024) were analyzed.
- Treatment time was defined as patient entry to exit from the gantry zone.
- Data underwent statistical cleaning; mean/median times were calculated by disease site and gantry.
Main Results:
- Overall average treatment time was 35.5 minutes, ranging from 26 to 52 minutes.
- High-volume sites (prostate, head/neck, CNS) showed tight distributions but many outliers.
- Gantry-specific time variations were observed, linked to staff experience and case focus.
Conclusions:
- RTLS offers a scalable solution for tracking proton therapy treatment times.
- RTLS data provide an unbiased foundation for optimizing proton center models.
- This data serves as a valuable benchmark for other proton therapy centers.
