IEC

5.5.2. Safety of linac installations
The complexity of modern linacs raises concerns as to safety of operationfrom the point of view of patients and operators. The International ElectrotechnicalCommission (IEC) publishes international standards that express, asnearly as possible, an international consensus of opinion on relevant technicalsubjects; electron linacs are addressed in detail by the IEC. The IEC statementon the safety of linacs (IEC 60601-2-1, p. 13) is as follows:“The use of electron accelerators for radiotherapy purposes may exposepatients to danger if the equipment fails to deliver the required dose to thepatient, or if the equipment design does not satisfy standards of electricaland mechanical safety. The equipment may also cause danger to persons inthe vicinity if the equipment fails to contain the radiation adequately and/orif there are inadequacies in the design of the treatment room.”


The IEC document addresses three categories of safety issues —
electrical, mechanical and radiation — and establishes specific requirements
mainly for the manufacturers of linacs in the design and construction of linacs
for use in radiotherapy. It also covers some radiation safety aspects of linac
installation in customer’s treatment rooms.