TheDepartmentofPhysicsispleasedtoannounce

The2017BarryBermanMemorialLecture

TechnologyAdvancesinRadiationOncologyintheAgeofBigData

JohnW.Wong,Ph.D.,JohnsHopkinsUniversity,DepartmentofRadiationOncologyandMolecularRadiationSciences,

Baltimore,MDOver the past two decades, rapid advances in detection and computer technologies have made available vast amount of new laboratory, clinical and

imaging data about the individual patients, ushering in the so-called Era of Big Data. In radiation therapy, big data are most apparent in the use of new image guidance technologies where anatomic, functional and biologic information facilitates the next generation of on-line adaptive radiation therapy. Along the way, we have gained significant knowledge about the quality of our delivery and patient treatment. Undoubtedly, our embrace of advanced technologies has led to notable clinical successes. Yet, questions can be raised as to whether we have reaped the transformative potential of technologies and big data, given the time and resources that need to be expanded. This presentation introduces several technical innovations and alternative approaches to enhance the present image guidance technologies, from quality assurance measures to treatment of difficult soft tissue targets. This presentation also proposes a new framework of clinical research where big data can be harnessed for decision support to improve the radiation treatment of cancer patients. When: Where:

Thursday, April 20th 2017 Lehman Auditorium 3:30 pm SEH Building, GWU B1220, 800 22nd St NW Washington DC, 20052 AbouttheSpeaker:Dr. Wong is Professor and Director of Division of Medical Physics in the Department of Radiation Oncology and Molecular Radiation Sciences at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. He is a Fellow of the American Association of Medical Physicists, the recipient of the George Edelstyn Medal from the Royal College of Radiology, United Kingdom in 2001, and the awardee of the Edith Quimby Lifetime Achievement Award of the AAPM in 2017. Three of his inventions, the Active Breathing Coordinator, the Cone-Beam Computed Tomography on-board a medical accelerator and the Small Animal Radiation Research Platform (SARRP) have been commercialized by the industries as radiation therapy products for the clinical and research community. Dr. Wong’s current research focus is developing enabling imaging and assessment technologies for pre-clinical and clinical radiation research, including molecular optical imaging and robotic ultrasound imaging. In addition, Dr. Wong is also playing a key role in the department’s initiative to implement a novel informatics infra-structure to more effectively support clinical decision making in the new era of multi-modality image guided radiation therapy.

AbouttheLectureSeries:In 2011, The Barry Berman Memorial Lecture Series was created through a generous gift by one of his close collaborators and colleagues, Professor Cedric Yu, a faculty member at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, Department of Radiation Oncology. Professors Berman and Yu formally worked together under a NIH-funded project on radiation cancer therapy. The goal of the lecture series is to inspire young people to study medical physics, by inviting nationally and internationally prominent scientists to speak on the application of physics principles to medicine.

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Inmemoriam:Professor Berman joined the Physics Department in the Fall of 1985, already an accomplished physicist, having made ground-breaking studies of atomic nuclei. His intellectual capacities and love of science led him to contribute to a vast array of topics, including fundamental research in medium and high energy nuclear physics, especially few-body nuclear physics, as well as applied physics in lunar geology, medical diagnostics and cancer radiotherapy, materials characterization and identification, and radiological and nuclear threat reduction. He was elected Chairman of the Physics Department multiple times and elected Columbian Professor of the Natural and Mathematical Sciences in 1998. Professor Berman was elected a Fellow of the American Physical Society in 1972 and authored or co-authored 244 refereed publications in physics, 430 papers in total. After a year-long and heroic struggle, GW Professor of Physics and Department Chair, Barry Berman, died July 20, 2010.

http://departments.columbian.gwu.edu/physics/