The role of medical physicists in accreditation and quality improvement processes in a comprehensive cancer center. Experience from the Lower Silesian Oncology, Pulmonology and Hematology Center

Introduction. Medical physicists are essential to safe and effective radiotherapy. Their responsibilities increasingly extend beyond technical supervision and include quality management, metrological traceability, clinical data governance, process optimization, and support for accreditation and certification activities. This article presents the experience of the Lower Silesian Oncology, Pulmonology and Hematology Center (DCOPiH, Dolnośląskie Centrum Onkologii, Pulmonologii i Hematologii ) in preparing for selected accreditation and certification processes, with particular emphasis on the role of medical physicists. Material and methods. We describe institutional quality-improvement activities related to accreditation according to Polish Standard–European Standard, International Organization for Standardization/International Electrotechnical Commission (PN-EN ISO/IEC) 17025 in the field of dosimetric supervision of radiotherapy, Network of Comprehensive Cancer Centres: Preparatory Activities on Creation of National Comprehensive Cancer Centres and EU Networking Joint Action (CraNE) Lung Cancer Comprehensive Cancer Care Network (CCCN) certification, and Innovative Partnership for Action Against Cancer Joint Action (iPAAC) CCCN accreditation. The analysis focuses on documentation, validation, uncertainty evaluation, quality assurance, treatment planning, digital integration, and preparation of audit evidence. Results. Medical physicists contributed to the development of more than 80 procedures and instructions, implementation of uncertainty budgets, validation of measurement methods, maintenance of metrological traceability, verification of treatment planning processes, and integration of radiotherapy data into quality-indicator reporting. Accreditation and certification activities strengthened process reproducibility, structured documentation, interdisciplinary collaboration, and data-driven quality management. Conclusions. The experience of DCOPiH demonstrates that medical physicists should be regarded as key members of quality-management teams in comprehensive cancer centers. Their expertise links technology, clinical practice, and organizational governance, thereby supporting patient safety and sustainable quality improvement.