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Radiation Therapy · Records, Consent & Process Literacy
AERB Approval — What It Means for a Radiation Centre
Medically reviewed by Dr. Venkata Sushma P, Radiation Oncologist, MBBS · MD (Radiation Oncology) · Last reviewed August 2026
AERB approval is a licence from India’s Atomic Energy Regulatory Board that permits a centre to install and operate radiation equipment. It covers the machine, the shielding of the treatment room and the trained safety staff around it. It does not judge the quality of your clinical care. Every radiotherapy facility in India needs one.
- A licence, not a review of your doctor — AERB checks radiation safety: the room, the equipment and the trained staff. Clinical quality is judged separately.
- You are allowed to ask to see it — the licensee name, the licence number and the validity date are the three details that matter, and asking for them is routine.
- Three credentials, three different bodies — AERB for radiation safety, NABH for hospital quality, the medical council for your doctor’s registration.
- Where your treatment actually happens — your radiotherapy is delivered at an NABH-accredited partner centre; CION Cancer Clinics coordinates your treatment plan, your oncology team and your care throughout.
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The short answer
What is AERB approval, and what does it mean for a radiation centre?
AERB approval is a statutory radiation-safety licence issued by India’s Atomic Energy Regulatory Board. It permits a named institution to install, possess and operate radiation-emitting treatment equipment at a specific address. It covers the shielded room, the equipment, the trained safety staff and the paperwork behind them. It is legally required — no centre in India may run a radiotherapy machine without it.
What it is not is a verdict on your care. AERB does not read your scans, approve your dose or rate your radiation oncologist. It is one of three separate credentials worth knowing about, and it is the only one that is legally compulsory. That distinction is the single most useful thing to carry into a centre visit.
Your radiotherapy is delivered at an NABH-accredited partner centre, and the AERB licence for the machine belongs to that centre, which owns and operates the equipment. CION Cancer Clinics coordinates your treatment plan, your oncology team and your care throughout — we do not own or operate radiotherapy equipment ourselves.
This page explains general regulatory practice in India so you can ask better questions. It is information, not legal advice, and it does not replace guidance from your own oncology team.
Did you know?
The Atomic Energy Regulatory Board was constituted in 1983 under the Atomic Energy Act, 1962, and radiation facilities in India are licensed under the Atomic Energy (Radiation Protection) Rules, 2004. So the licence you are asking about is not a courtesy certificate a centre chooses to obtain — it is a legal precondition for switching the machine on.
Scope of the licence
What does AERB actually regulate at a radiation centre?
Seven things, all of them about radiation safety rather than clinical decision-making.
AERB regulates the room, the machine and the people who keep both safe. It approves the treatment room layout and shielding before installation, registers the equipment, licenses the radiation source, requires named safety staff, monitors staff radiation doses, sets quality-assurance schedules, and controls how a source is finally disposed of.
1 · The room
Layout and shielding, approved before the machine arrives
The thickness and design of the treatment room walls, door and maze are reviewed and cleared first, so radiation stays inside the room.
2 · The equipment
The machine model itself must be registered
Radiation-emitting treatment equipment — a linear accelerator, a brachytherapy unit, a teletherapy unit — is cleared as a type before any centre may install it.
3 · The licence
Permission to possess and use the radiation source
Issued to a named institution at a named address, with a validity period. It has to be renewed; it is not a one-time certificate for the life of the building.
4 · The safety staff
A named Radiological Safety Officer is mandatory
Every licensed radiotherapy facility must appoint a qualified Radiological Safety Officer, alongside the medical physicist who handles treatment planning and machine QA.
5 · Staff monitoring
Everyone working near the beam wears a dose badge
Personnel dosimetry badges are issued, read periodically and recorded, so occupational exposure for radiographers and physicists stays within limits.
6 · Ongoing QA
Periodic output checks and radiation surveys
The machine’s output is verified on a schedule and the area is surveyed, with records kept. This is what keeps delivered dose close to planned dose.
7 · End of life
Safe transfer or disposal of a radiation source
A centre cannot simply retire a source. Transfer, storage and disposal are regulated too, and decommissioning needs clearance.
Read this before you rely on it
What AERB approval does not tell you
An AERB licence tells you the machine is legally allowed to run. It tells you nothing about the plan being drawn for you. Treating the licence as a quality rating is the most common mistake patients make when comparing radiation centres, and it is exactly the gap this page is written to close.
- Not your treatment plan — intent, total dose, fractionation, technique and organs-at-risk limits are clinical judgements, reviewed by your oncology team and tumour board, not by a safety regulator.
- Not your doctor’s credentials — registration with the National Medical Commission or a state medical council is a separate check, made against a different register.
- Not hospital quality — infection control, nursing standards, patient-safety systems and record-keeping sit under NABH accreditation, which is voluntary and covers the hospital as a whole.
- Not waiting times, cost or scheme cover — those are administrative questions for the billing desk, and worth asking in the same visit.
- Not a promise of outcome — no licence, accreditation or certificate anywhere predicts how an individual patient will respond to treatment.
If what you actually want reviewed is the plan rather than the paperwork, that is a clinical second opinion — a different request, and one you can make without leaving your current centre.
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Do this yourself
How do I verify a radiation centre’s AERB approval?
Six steps. Most of it happens at the front desk, in about twenty minutes, on a visit you were making anyway.
Ask the centre directly, then check three details: the licensee name, the licence number and the validity date. Confirm the name on the licence matches the centre at the address where you will be treated, ask who the Radiological Safety Officer is, and contact AERB if you want independent confirmation.
Ask the centre directly
Ask the front desk, the medical physicist or the safety officer whether the machine you will be treated on is licensed by AERB, and whether you may see the licence. It is an administrative question, not a complaint.
Write down the three details that matter
The name of the licensee, the licence or registration number, and the validity date. A licence you are told about but never shown, or one with no visible expiry, is worth a follow-up question.
Check the licensee name matches the centre you are in
The licence should name the institution operating the machine at the address where you will actually be treated. A licence held by a different entity or a different branch does not cover the room you are standing in.
Ask who the Radiological Safety Officer is
Every licensed radiotherapy facility must have a named, qualified Radiological Safety Officer. Ask for the name and how to reach them. A centre that cannot name one has a gap worth raising before you commit.
Cross-check with AERB if you want independent confirmation
AERB administers these licences through its e-LORA online system, which institutions use to apply and renew. It is not designed as a public patient search, so for independent confirmation contact AERB using the details on its official website, aerb.gov.in.
Ask about the other two credentials in the same breath
Whether the hospital holds NABH accreditation, and your treating doctor’s registration with the National Medical Commission or the relevant state medical council. Three checks, three bodies, one conversation.
Not comfortable asking in English? Ask your care coordinator to make the call with you — Telugu-speaking coordinators do this with district families every week, and they know the exact wording that gets a straight answer.
Side by side
AERB, NABH and medical council registration: who checks what?
A general comparison of how these credentials work in India. One does not substitute for another.
| Question | AERB licence | NABH accreditation | Medical council registration |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who issues it | Atomic Energy Regulatory Board, the national radiation-safety regulator | National Accreditation Board for Hospitals & Healthcare Providers | National Medical Commission and the state medical councils |
| Is it mandatory | Yes — legally required before radiation equipment may be operated | No — voluntary quality accreditation a hospital chooses to pursue | Yes — a doctor must be registered to practise |
| What it covers | Room shielding, equipment, source licence, safety staff, staff dose monitoring, QA, disposal | Hospital-wide clinical processes, patient safety, infection control, records | An individual doctor’s qualification and right to practise |
| What it does not cover | Your diagnosis, your dose, your fractionation, your outcome | The radiation machine’s licence specifically | The facility, its equipment or its systems |
| Applies to | The centre that owns and operates the machine, at one named address | The hospital as an institution | The individual treating you |
| How you check it | Ask the centre for the licensee name, number and validity; contact AERB for independent confirmation | Ask the hospital, or look for it on the NABH register | Ask the doctor for the registration number and council |
CION Cancer Clinics is not itself NABH-accredited and does not own radiotherapy equipment. Your radiotherapy is delivered at an NABH-accredited partner centre, which holds the AERB licence for the machine it operates; CION coordinates your treatment plan, your oncology team and your care throughout.
The reason to bother
Why does AERB approval matter to me as a patient?
It matters in three practical ways: shielding, calibration and continuity. The approved room design keeps radiation inside the treatment room, protecting the family waiting outside. Licence conditions require the machine’s output to be checked on a schedule, which keeps delivered dose close to planned dose. And a facility without a current licence can be required to stop.
That third point is the one families underestimate. A radiation course is built around consecutive working days, and an unplanned interruption partway through is a genuine disruption to a schedule that was designed as a whole. Asking about validity dates before you start is a five-minute conversation that avoids a much harder one later.
If cost or scheme cover is on your mind as well, ask the billing desk to confirm the centre’s empanelment status in the same visit. Credentials and cover are different questions, but they are answered at the same counter, and asking both at once saves a second trip from a district town.
What AERB approval is not is a shortcut for judging clinical quality. A properly licensed centre with a plan you do not understand is still a plan you do not understand. The licence removes a category of avoidable risk that has nothing to do with your cancer; everything to do with your cancer is decided by the team drawing your plan.
A note on consent forms: the radiation consent you sign is a clinical document about your treatment, not a regulatory one about the machine. If a clause is unclear, ask the treating team to explain it before you sign, and take the time you need. This page is general information and is not legal advice.
You are allowed to ask
A properly licensed centre will not mind the question
Whether you are the patient or the relative doing the homework, a radiation oncologist can help you ask clearly and read the answer properly.
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Common questions
AERB approval for a radiation centre — your questions answered
What does AERB regulate at a radiation therapy centre?
AERB — the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board — regulates radiation safety, not clinical quality. It approves the layout and shielding of the treatment room before the machine is installed, registers the equipment model, and issues the licence that allows a centre to possess and use the radiation source. It requires a qualified Radiological Safety Officer and medical physicist to be in place. It mandates personnel dose-monitoring badges for staff working near the beam, sets quality-assurance and radiation-survey schedules, and controls how a source is finally transferred or disposed of. What it does not judge is whether the dose prescribed for your cancer is right. That is a clinical decision made by your oncology team.
How can I verify that a radiation centre has AERB approval?
Ask the centre directly. A licensed facility keeps its AERB licence on record and can show you three things: the name of the licensee, the licence or registration number, and the validity date. Check that the name on the licence matches the centre at the address where you will actually be treated, and ask who the named Radiological Safety Officer is. AERB administers these licences through its e-LORA online system, which institutions use to apply and renew; it is not designed as a public patient search, so if you want independent confirmation, contact AERB using the details published on aerb.gov.in. Asking is routine — a properly licensed centre will not be offended by the question.
Why does AERB approval matter to me as a patient?
It matters in three practical ways. First, shielding: the approved room design is what keeps radiation inside the treatment room, so the family waiting outside and the staff working nearby are protected. Second, quality assurance: licence conditions require the machine's output to be checked on a set schedule, which is what keeps the dose delivered close to the dose planned. Third, continuity: a facility operating without a current licence can be required to stop, and an interruption partway through a radiation course is a real disruption to a schedule that is built around consecutive days. AERB approval does not promise a good clinical outcome. It removes a category of avoidable risk that has nothing to do with your cancer.
Is AERB approval the same as NABH accreditation?
No. They are different checks, run by different bodies, and one does not replace the other. AERB approval is a statutory licence under India's atomic energy law: it is legally required before a centre can operate radiation equipment, and it covers radiation safety only. NABH accreditation is a voluntary hospital quality programme covering clinical processes, patient safety systems, infection control and record-keeping across the hospital as a whole — not specifically the radiation machine. A centre can hold both, and many do. Your treating doctor's registration with the National Medical Commission or a state medical council is a third, separate check. Ask about all three; it is one conversation, not three.
Does AERB approval mean my treatment plan is safe and correct?
No, and this is the most common misunderstanding. AERB looks at the equipment, the room and the safety staff. It does not review your diagnosis, your treatment intent, the total dose prescribed, how that dose is split into sessions, or the dose limits set for the healthy organs near the treatment area. Those are clinical judgements made by your radiation oncologist and medical physicist, and discussed by your tumour board. If you want that side checked, what you are asking for is a clinical second opinion on the plan itself — a separate request from asking to see a licence, and one you can make without leaving your current centre.
Is it unusual to ask a radiation centre for its AERB licence?
It is not unusual, and it need not be confrontational. Radiation centres handle regulatory paperwork constantly and are used to being asked about licences by inspectors, insurers and empanelment auditors. Framing helps: ask the front desk or the medical physicist rather than the doctor mid-consultation, and ask it as a factual question — could you tell me the AERB licence number and validity for this machine — rather than as a challenge. If a centre is evasive, that response is itself information. This page describes general practice in India and is not legal advice; for a formal complaint or a regulatory question, contact AERB directly.
This page explains, in general terms, how radiation-safety licensing and related credentials work at radiation therapy centres in India. It is patient information, not legal advice, and it is not a substitute for guidance from your own oncology team about your diagnosis and treatment plan.