Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Low Dose Rate Brachytherapy For Prostate Cancer, Madelyn Heidlauf

Student Research Poster Presentations 2024

Prostate cancer affects the male population and radiation therapy plays a role in treating this type of cancer. Brachytherapy is a common type of treatment for prostate cancer. Low-dose brachytherapy uses radioactive seeds placed within the prostate to deliver dose directly to the cancer. Brachytherapy seeds are placed within the patient’s prostate in an invasive procedure, which are then used during treatment to make sure the radiation is going to the correct area and not affecting the surrounding healthy tissue. Prostate cancer can affect any male, and the symptoms can be asymptomatic or symptomatic. However, males are encouraged to get …

Importance Of Deep Inspiration Breath Hold For Left Breast Cancer Treatment, Cassandra Benderavich, Elaine Halesey

Medical Imaging Senior Posters

Abstract

This project explains the importance of deep inspiration breath hold (DIBH) technique for treating left breast and chest wall tumors. General statistics, definition of gating and DIBH, inclusion and exclusion criteria, dose reduction, differences of free breathing and DIBH techniques, and expected outcome are also discussed. Breast cancer is the leading cause of female deaths in the United States, and left breast cancer diagnosis is more common than right breast cancer diagnosis. Left breast cancer diagnosis accounts for 50.8% of breast cancer diagnosis and right breast cancer accounts for the remaining 49.2%. The risk of breast cancer diagnosis in …

Surface Guided Radiation Therapy Versus Traditional Triangular Positioning, Katelyn Sausser

Medical Imaging Senior Posters

Surface-guided Radiation Therapy (SGRT) is a positioning monitoring system utilizing 3D nonionizing optical surface imaging. This system assists in patient set-up and allows for real-time monitoring of the patient’s skin surface during radiation therapy treatment. Surface-guided imaging can be used for many treatment sites such as breast, abdomen, head and neck, and extremities. SGRT is believed to have more advantages than the traditional triangular positioning including shorter set-up times, improved accuracy and reproducibility of treatment area, decreased dose, and improved patient comfort. Studies have also shown the planned dose delivery can also be monitored with SGRT and decrease dose to …

High-Dose Rate Brachytherapy For Non-Melanoma Skin Cancer, Morgan Kraack

Medical Imaging Senior Posters

No abstract provided.

Sgrt Eliminates Need For Patient Tattoos In Radiation Therapy, Gina Hemsley

Medical Imaging Senior Posters

Surface Guided Radiation Therapy, or SGRT, is a rapidly growing technology designed to improve radiation treatment accuracy of nearly every cancer type without the need for permanent skin tattoos. Patients were typically marked with 3 tattoos, indicating patient setup marks and isocenter marks. SGRT is an external beam radiation therapy technique which uses three-dimensional camera technology to accurately target and kill cancer cells. During patient setup and treatment, the technology uses the patient’s external surface to guarantee that the radiation dose is being consistently applied in accordance with the treatment plan, as well as tracking any patient motion throughout treatment. …

Computed Tomography Simulation In Radiation Therapy For Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer, Victoria Narbone

Student Research Poster Presentations 2023

The purpose of this research is to educate readers on the role of computed tomography (CT) simulation in the radiation therapy process, specifically for patients with lung cancer. The goal of radiation therapy treatment is to maximize the dose to a target, usually a tumor, while minimizing the dose to the normal surrounding tissue. CT imaging creates cross-sectional images of the patient’s anatomy which can be used to create a treatment plan. In non-small cell carcinoma (NSCLC) there are four critical structures of concern including the spinal cord, esophagus, heart, healthy lung. CT simulation uses images to localize the tumor …

Radiation Oncology: Breast Cancer, Julia Hornberger

Student Research Poster Presentations 2023

Radiation Oncology: Breast Cancer

Student Researcher: Julia Hornberger

Faculty Advisor: Dr. Elaine Halesey, Ed.D., R.T.(R)(QM)(ARRT)

Abstract

This project explains breast cancer and the role of radiation therapy. Breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed malignancy in the world for women. Types of breast cancers, the pathology and risk factors associated, the signs and symptoms, imaging, simulation setup, diagnosis, and treatment, as well as some general statistics and prevention are discussed. In 2022, 280,000 new cases of breast cancer occurred with 40,000 deaths occuring. Breast cancer should be known as it effects 1 in 8 women are diagnosed within their lifetime. …

Benefits Of The Cyberknife For Prostate Treatment, Emily Baro

Medical Imaging Senior Posters

Radiation therapy is a type of cancer treatment that uses high- energy rays to kill cancer cells. There are a lot of cancers that can be treated with radiation, but a common type is prostate cancer. Prostate cancer is the most common type of cancer diagnosed in men. The types of radiation therapy used to treat prostate cancer are external beam radiation, brachytherapy, and radiopharmaceuticals. The most common machine used for radiation treatment is the linear accelerator. Most patients are treated using the linear accelerator but a select few can be treated using the cyber knife. The cyber knife is …

Prone Versus Supine Position For Breast Cancer Treatment, Alexis Wychock

Student Research Poster Presentations 2022

This project explains the two most common positions to treat breast cancer: prone and supine. Radiation therapy, breast cancer, complications of radiation therapy to the breast, and the new set-up for prone positioning called Crawl Couch are also discussed on the poster. Breast cancer is the second most common cancer in women in the United States. Men can also develop breast cancer, but it is less common. Supine is performed utilizing deep inspiration breath hold and the prone is completed using free breathing. Prone and supine are the two positions used but some researchers found a better way to treat …

Electron Beam Radiation Therapy For Superficial Skin Lesions, Lindsey Shimko

Student Research Poster Presentations 2022

This project goes into detail describing electron beam radiation therapy and the different uses within treatment options. Electron beam radiation therapy is used for treatment of superficial lesions on the skin. Some common uses of electron beam radiation therapy are T-cell lymphoma, Mycosis fungoides lymphoma, basal cell and squamous cell skin cancers, breast cancer lumpectomy site boost, as well as non-cancerous keloids. A material used to produce accurate radiation dose is bolus, which acts as a layer of human tissue. This material is used for uneven areas of the body. Another important material used in electron beam radiation therapy is …

Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy (Sbrt) For Treatment Of Lung Cancer, Camryn Frazier

Medical Imaging Senior Posters

This project explains stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) and its role in treating lung cancers. Different types of SBRT treatment, statistics, toxicity, success rates, and data from studies are discussed. More than half of all cancer patients experience lung metastasis, many of these cases being inoperable. SBRT provides a noninvasive alternative to surgery as well as high rates of local tumor control and minimal toxicity. SBRT is a form of external beam radiation therapy that delivers a hypofractionated dose directly to the cancerous target volume. Two common types of SBRT utilized to treat lung cancer are intensity modulated radiation therapy …

Use Of Electron Beam Therapy In The Treatment Of Basal Cell Carcinoma, Amanda Smith

Medical Imaging Senior Posters

No abstract provided.

Respiratory Gating In Radiation Therapy Without Adequate Breath-Holds, Ethan Snyder

Student Research Poster Presentations 2021

Respiratory gating is used in radiation therapy to maximize the effect of radiation on the target area while also minimizing radiation exposure to surrounding normal tissue. This is accomplished through the use of breath-holds during treatment. This study focuses on a specific patient who had difficulty holding their breath for the required treatment time. The question being asked was, would inadequate breath-holds lead to a negative effect on the patient’s outcome? This study was conducted by following the patient’s treatment course and comparing end results with similar patients who were able to complete breath-holds to a more satisfying degree. The …

Treatment Of Orbital Lesions Using Cyberknife Stereotactic Radiosurgery, Emily Morahan

Student Research Poster Presentations 2021

The purpose of the research done was to evaluate the use of CyberKnife Stereotactic Radiosurgery (SRS) for treating orbital lesions. Efficacy and tolerability of such treatment was analyzed with data drawn from multiple sources, regarding dose and fractionation, quality of life following treatment(s) and prognosis. CyberKnife SRS is the newest, most advanced model of radiation delivery systems, featuring a robotic arm capable of manipulating the linear accelerator into thousands of unique angles. The addition of new angles allows for a more precise concentration of radiation delivered to the lesions. In the case of optic lesions, it is crucial to minimize …

Maximizing Effectiveness Of Palliative Radiotherapy In Terminal Cancer Patients, Sarah Bifano

Student Research Poster Presentations 2020

Radiation therapy is utilized to treat tumor cells with high-dose radiation. When the severity of the cancer progresses, the goal of radiation therapy becomes relief of symptoms. This is referred to as palliative radiotherapy. Palliative radiotherapy can be futile if not administered efficiently. There is a recurring question of how to achieve optimal palliative radiotherapy for patients. This research evaluates the most effective factors to optimize treatment, such as proper patient selection and effective timing. A guideline for treatment selection based upon patient performance status, severity of symptoms, progression of cancer, and metastasis of cancer is formed. The sooner a …

Supine Vs. Prone Positioning For Breast Radiation, Jennifer Curtin

Student Research Poster Presentations 2020

When treating breast cancer patients with radiation therapy, it is important to find treatment techniques that reduce the dose to organs at risk without compromising the target tumor volume. Due to advances in cancer diagnosis, patients are diagnosed and treated earlier causing them to live longer. However, these patients are at greater risk for developing long-term complications from treatment, specifically cardiac toxicity and cardiac diseases. Research was evaluated regarding the best treatment position for breast cancer patients to reduce the dose to organs at risk, focusing on the dose to the heart. Every breast cancer patient varies in breast anatomy, …

The Use Of Cyberknife Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy In Treating Hepatocellular Carcinoma, Alexis Baddick

Student Research Poster Presentations 2020

Radiation therapy is an ever-changing field, making it easier and safer to treat a broader range of cancers. With the advancement of the CyberKnife System, we can now investigate how effective stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) treatments are in terms of treating hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients. HCC is the most common liver cancer as well as one of the most prominent cancer-related deaths in the world. Several studies indicated that, previously, treating HCC with ionizing radiation was not an effective option due to the liver’s sensitivity to radiation, among other factors. After conducting research and examining nine different sources, there …